Fred Greaves/Reuters
Amazon is reportedly planning to split its second headquarters between the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens, New York, and the Crystal City area of Arlington, Virginia.
- Amazon is closing in on deals to develop its second headquarters in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens, New York, and the Crystal City area of Arlington, Virginia, The New York Times reported on Monday evening.
- While state and cities have been fighting to win Amazon's HQ2, many people are less than pleased with the reported decision.
- Critics say Amazon's decision to split the headquarters make the drawn-out process seem like a PR stunt.
- Meanwhile, many New Yorkers are unhappy with the idea of Amazon opening HQ2 in the city, despite Gov. Andrew Cuomo's efforts to win over the company.
Amazon is reportedly finalizing its HQ2 plans. And, people aren't happy.
After months of deliberations and dramatics - without many official communications from Amazon - the company is finalizing plans to split its second headquarters between two locations: Long Island City, in Queens, New York, and Crystal City, in Arlington, Virginia, The New York Times reported on Monday evening.
So far, reactions haven't been positive on social media.
Amazon's reported decision to split its headquarters after months of deliberation - essentially opening two offices that would reportedly house 25,000 people each instead of a second headquarters that could rival its more than 45,000 employees in Seattle - rubbed many people the wrong way.
Insiders have been buzzing about Crystal City being a top pick for HQ2 for some time. However, New York City has been less explored as an option than the Virginia spot.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been pushing for Amazon to move its second headquarters to the state, telling reporters on Monday he would change his name to "Amazon Cuomo" to secure the deal.
However, others are less pleased.
"If HQ2 came to New York, with its influx of tech workers, the campus could exacerbate several problems that already plague the city, including high housing prices, overpopulation, and gridlock - all things Seattle, Amazon's home, has seen since the company arrived in the late 1990s," Business Insider's Leanna Garfield reported in January 2018.
In January, Amazon narrowed its selection to 20 finalist cities, including Atlanta, Georgia; Raleigh, North Carolina; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The pick of two locations in the general New York City and Washington, DC, areas out of these options disappointed some people.
Amazon did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment on whether it has made a final selection, and it declined to comment on The Times' reporting.
Read more about Amazon's HQ2:
- Amazon made an important investment in Seattle, and it highlights a key issue for HQ2
- Amazon HQ2 candidates are going to great lengths to keep their plans secret
- HQ2 is making cities consider projects they've been ignoring for years - and it shows the power of Amazon
- 7 horrible things that could happen to cities if they win Amazon's HQ2 bid
- Amazon is reportedly nearing a deal to make New York City one of the homes of its second headquarters - here's why it would be disastrous
OH MY GOD THIS WHOLE ODYSSEY DOESNT EVEN END WITH A SECOND HEADQUARTERS BUT JUST TWO ADDITIONAL OFFICES https://t.co/L6wLrwztxf
- Eliot Brown (@eliotwb) November 5, 2018So Amazon lied throughout the entire H2 search process, making cities ante up in expectation of a far, far bigger deal than they were actually getting. https://t.co/QTIMoEV680
- Dan O'Sullivan (@Bro_Pair) November 5, 2018this guy is right
"HQ2" was basically an enormous PR stunt to get the best tax breaks possible from local governments all clamoring over one another
only thing keeping me from thinking techcos wont do this again and again is because the exercise made AMZN look terrible https://t.co/Jj0u5FlxPJ
- rat king (@MikeIsaac) November 5, 2018@NYGovCuomo have you ever even stepped foot in Long Island City? Have you ridden a 7 in rush hour? You're offering subsidies to Amazon and what are we residents getting?
- Elizabeth Sile (@esile1) November 6, 2018It's a nightmare to get to LIC from Brooklyn and this whole deal seems to have been finalized before the public got a whiff of it. Even if it builds on Amazon's existing workforce in New York, it's massively disruptive, and the worst way to play ball with residents. https://t.co/dlvaxDBPDd
- Hannah Höchocinco (@MsAvignon) November 6, 2018famous for its ruthless pursuit of efficient delivery systems, Amazon thinks, "but what if we congested one of New York's key subway chokepoints?" https://t.co/kLdmGc1Io3
- Alan Yuhas (@AlanYuhas) November 6, 2018STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM NYC AMAZON https://t.co/HbzPl2cM5m
- Jack Mirkinson (@jackmirkinson) November 6, 2018I'm confused. Wouldn't having Amazon's second headquarters in Long Island City make North Brooklyn and Queens housing even more unaffordable, our subways more crowded, and traffic from LI worse?
- meg banana (@megbren) November 6, 2018WHY IS AMAZON CONSIDERING GOING TO LONG ISLAND CITY ALL THE TRAINS ARE CROWDED AS IT IS AND LIC IS GONNA COST MORE AND THE L TRAIN IS GONNA STOP AND LIFE IS TRAGIC I DONT WANT AMAZON
- Jocelyn #YESorYES (@1359pm) November 6, 2018Really seems like a bummer that Amazon isn't putting its HQ2s into areas that could really benefit by an infusion of high-tech jobs, rather than DC and NYC.
- Clara Jeffery (@ClaraJeffery) November 6, 2018congrats to the DC & NYC metro areas on your incoming Amazon hubs, I'm as surprised as you are that literally no other cities exist in the United States
- Kelsey D. Atherton (@AthertonKD) November 6, 2018Amazon taking over the country's political, financial, and media centers overnight is also extremely bad news for America.
And while Amazon should be broken up regardless, remember when we briefly thought they might spread the wealth to a region that actually needs some? lol
- David Klion (@DavidKlion) November 6, 2018