Amazon Seeking 2nd Headquarters: Canadian Cities Pitch Interest

[FFX-ME]

Originally Posted by Capsicum

Again, it's another case where Toronto gets to represent the "face" of Canada, and brands itself as representing Canada as a whole, just like the Blue Jays in baseball and the Raptors, in basketball.

I'm finding more and more situations where Toronto tries to sell itself as "Canada" to Americans.

I know this bugs me. I had friends from Toronto telling me that the Blue Jays were Canada's MLB team. I disagreed, it sure it Toronto's MLB team but Canada's MLB team would more accurately be the expos. They were the first and started the baseball trend in Canada and helped land a team in Toronto. Montreal will get the team back eventually.

I don't know if this is one of these situations though. There were many Canadian bids, all had the same support of the federal and provincial governments.

[Vixx]

Yeah the reasons why cities like Newark, Raleigh and Indianapolis are listed is almost purely because of the crazy incentives the states they are located in offered. Realistically none of those will likely be selected.

Good for Toronto for making the shortlist but I still think they were selected, as some are saying, for the purposes of seeing what the feds and province are willing to cough up to lure them there and to throw in that wildcard factor.

Also interesting on how cities like Los Angeles and Miami made it. Likely due to being 'desirable places to live' but still kind of odd.

I still say Austin, Boston and Atlanta are the real contenders here with the dark horses being D.C. and Denver.

[Corndogger]

Originally Posted by Vixx

Yeah the reasons why cities like Newark, Raleigh and Indianapolis are listed is almost purely because of the crazy incentives the states they are located in offered. Realistically none of those will likely be selected.

Good for Toronto for making the shortlist but I still think they were selected, as some are saying, for the purposes of seeing what the feds and province are willing to cough up to lure them there and to throw in that wildcard factor.

Also interesting on how cities like Los Angeles and Miami made it. Likely due to being 'desirable places to live' but still kind of odd.

I still say Austin, Boston and Atlanta are the real contenders here with the dark horses being D.C. and Denver.

Raleigh was likely selected because it's part of the Research Triangle. It makes perfect sense why Amazon would want to consider that area. Denver has a better shot than Boston. I remember reading that some execs and employees were really against Boston because of living costs. Austin rated very favorable in that regard.

[Capsicum]

No Mexican cities and the biggest Canadian city alone makes it, meanwhile many small American towns make it on.

Amazon's "North American headquarters" contest only slightly lives up to its name. Then again, it's at least not going as far as the equivalent of calling a championship that includes only one non-American team, "the World Series"

[Corndogger]

Originally Posted by Capsicum

No Mexican cities and the biggest Canadian city alone makes it, meanwhile many small American towns make it on.

Amazon's "North American headquarters" contest only slightly lives up to its name. Then again, it's at least not going as far as the equivalent of calling a championship that includes only one non-American team, "the World Series"

That's not why it's called "The World Series."

[TorontoDrew]

Originally Posted by osmo

Because of this though Toronto actually has more power. Amazon will get the Province and the Feds to bend over if needed to make something happen. In the USA counties, States, and the Feds may do nothing or intervene.

The ability to get all levels of Govt st the same table was the reason Sidewalk Labs picked Toronto for its project. It's nearly impossible to get that sort of situation in the USA.

This is actually a good point I hadn't thought of.

[TorontoDrew]

Originally Posted by FFX-ME

I know this bugs me. I had friends from Toronto telling me that the Blue Jays were Canada's MLB team. I disagreed, it sure it Toronto's MLB team but Canada's MLB team would more accurately be the expos. They were the first and started the baseball trend in Canada and helped land a team in Toronto. Montreal will get the team back eventually.

I don't know if this is one of these situations though. There were many Canadian bids, all had the same support of the federal and provincial governments.

When I was in BC I saw Jays hats everywhere, and in YVR they were selling Jays merchandise. It's kind of true even if you don't agree.

[yaletown_fella]

Originally Posted by FFX-ME

I know this bugs me. I had friends from Toronto telling me that the Blue Jays were Canada's MLB team. I disagreed, it sure it Toronto's MLB team but Canada's MLB team would more accurately be the expos. They were the first and started the baseball trend in Canada and helped land a team in Toronto. Montreal will get the team back eventually.

I don't know if this is one of these situations though. There were many Canadian bids, all had the same support of the federal and provincial governments.

I dont think Toronto proper will get it. It will end up in the 905. I think Vaughan Metropolitan Center has a better chance, especially with being so close to all the highways and the new subway extension. I believe taxes are also lower in Vaughan.

[Vixx]

Originally Posted by Corndogger

Raleigh was likely selected because it's part of the Research Triangle. It makes perfect sense why Amazon would want to consider that area. Denver has a better shot than Boston. I remember reading that some execs and employees were really against Boston because of living costs. Austin rated very favorable in that regard.

Good point, but I still think that Raleigh's odds are low. Boston's been gaining a lot of steam lately and has consistently been considered most pundits' top 3-5 picks, hence why I'd rate it higher then Denver.

[Capsicum]

Originally Posted by yaletown_fella

I dont think Toronto proper will get it. It will end up in the 905. I think Vaughan Metropolitan Center has a better chance, especially with being so close to all the highways and the new subway extension. I believe taxes are also lower in Vaughan.

Well Vaughan's slogan used to be "the city above Toronto"...

[SignalHillHiker]

Toronto is outside Trumplandia. I imagine that's a huge bonus for its bid in the current political climate. Good luck TO - love your hair, hope you win.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Vixx

Yeah the reasons why cities like Newark, Raleigh and Indianapolis are listed is almost purely because of the crazy incentives the states they are located in offered. Realistically none of those will likely be selected.

Raleigh is the second-fastest growing metro in the US and is the hub for a tremendous tech industry. It's probably a top 5 or top 10 finalist.

But Raleigh does have one powerful factor going for it – it is one of the most digitalized metro areas in the country.

Only California’s famed Silicon Valley and the Boston area with its Harvard-MIT Route 128 high-tech corridor scored higher on the digital scale, according to a study released Wednesday by the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank. (Several metro areas tied with Raleigh.)

Scoring so high on high-tech almost certainly reflects the presence of the Triangle’s major universities as well as such tech companies as SAS Institute, Cisco Systems, Red Hat, IBM, Citrix and Lenovo.

Originally Posted by Corndogger

I remember reading that some execs and employees were really against Boston because of living costs. Austin rated very favorable in that regard.

Boston is one of the most economically unequal cities in the US as well, if you're into that sort of thing.

[Loco101]

Wouldn't Amazon eventually build a large Canadian headquarters anyway and it would more than likely be in the GTA?

I'm thinking that Toronto has a shot but not a great one. My guess would be somewhere along the Eastern Seaboard that is diverse and in a state that votes heavily democratic (anti-Trump). That would point to the Washington DC area, Boston or New York City.

[1overcosc]

It's interesting that they picked three locations in the Washington DC metropolitan area, all in separate states. That says to me that Washington DC metro is really their #1 choice.

In terms of incentives, the lower cost of labour in Canada, the dollar exchange, and the savings from not having to provide primary health care can count as Toronto's "incentives".

Trump's tax cuts don't really change the math for Amazon one way or another because tech companies already pay very little corporate tax anyway.

[Corndogger]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

It's interesting that they picked three locations in the Washington DC metropolitan area, all in separate states. That says to me that Washington DC metro is really their #1 choice.

In terms of incentives, the lower cost of labour in Canada, the dollar exchange, and the savings from not having to provide primary health care can count as Toronto's "incentives".

Trump's tax cuts don't really change the math for Amazon one way or another because tech companies already pay very little corporate tax anyway.

Metro DC does have positives but more than other top contenders? It also would make no sense--at least to me--for them to spend that kind of money just to make life easier for Bezos.

[Corndogger]

Originally Posted by Loco101

Wouldn't Amazon eventually build a large Canadian headquarters anyway and it would more than likely be in the GTA?

I'm thinking that Toronto has a shot but not a great one. My guess would be somewhere along the Eastern Seaboard that is diverse and in a state that votes heavily democratic (anti-Trump). That would point to the Washington DC area, Boston or New York City.

Toronto has no shot. Amazon also isn't going to make a decision with long-term consequences based on the current political climate. The Republicans lost another what should have been a sure win election on Tuesday in the special election held in Wisconsin. They lost by 16 points. I think that's the fourth election in a row they've lost since Trump took office. Come next January the balance of power in Congress could be very different.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Corndogger

Toronto has no shot. Amazon also isn't going to make a decision with long-term consequences based on the current political climate. The Republicans lost another what should have been a sure win election on Tuesday in the special election held in Wisconsin. They lost by 16 points. I think that's the fourth election in a row they've lost since Trump took office. Come next January the balance of power in Congress could be very different.

The choice of Toronto would seem a huge shot across the bow of the Trump administration. Whether that makes Toronto a more likely or a less likely choice? My gut says it's gotta be less likely. Hope I'm wrong.

[kel]

With the federal tax cuts in the USA and the extreamly high tax rate and cost of living in Ontario my guess is it will go to a Eastern American city. The one chance Toronto area does have is if Amazon decides to to throw out all the benefits Trump and crew are offering large corporations and open shop in Toronto to despise him.

[Pinion]

Originally Posted by TorontoDrew

When I was in BC I saw Jays hats everywhere, and in YVR they were selling Jays merchandise. It's kind of true even if you don't agree.

In the rare times the Mariners were good you'd see their merchandise too. Never Expos. The Jays winning back to back in the early 90s was the only time I can remember Vancouverites acting like a Toronto team was their own.

I wore a White Sox cap through most of high school.

On topic, I think Bezos will choose a DC area city because he wants more political influence.

[travis3000]

Originally Posted by 1overcosc

It's interesting that they picked three locations in the Washington DC metropolitan area, all in separate states. That says to me that Washington DC metro is really their #1 choice.

In terms of incentives, the lower cost of labour in Canada, the dollar exchange, and the savings from not having to provide primary health care can count as Toronto's "incentives".

Trump's tax cuts don't really change the math for Amazon one way or another because tech companies already pay very little corporate tax anyway.

I agree, my gut was saying Atlanta. Now based on this top 20 its swaying more to Washington DC area. Why else would they choose three locations all so close to one another? Toronto isn't even in their top 5 I imagine. They don't need the negative publicity.