Curbed NY - Amazon HQ2 in New York City: news and updatesLove where you live2019-02-28T18:13:17-05:00http://ny.curbed.com/rss/stream/162678232019-02-28T18:13:17-05:002019-02-28T18:13:17-05:00Cuomo personally appeals to Jeff Bezos to bring Amazon HQ2 back to NYC
<figure>
<img alt="NYC Mayor De Blasio And Governor Cuomo Discuss Amazon 2nd Headquarters Decision" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/bzL2qlGrn6Z1ITFq9Zh-8NY4H_k=/257x0:4373x3087/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63147970/1061174136.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio discuss the Amazon HQ2 announcement on November 13. | Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Will the campaign to get HQ2 back to NYC work?</p> <p id="DmWZr2">In the wake of Amazon’s decision to <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled">abandon its plans</a> for a second North American headquarters in New York City, Gov. Andrew “Amazon” Cuomo has taken it upon himself to personally plead with the tech company’s billionaire CEO, Jeff Bezos, in an effort to bring Amazon back. </p>
<p id="YchYQM">The <em>New York Times </em><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/28/nyregion/amazon-hq2-nyc.html">reports</a> that Cuomo has spoken to Amazon execs, including Bezos, in “multiple phone conversations” since the company reneged on its plans to bring a new corporate campus to Long Island City. Since that announcement, which was influenced by the fierce pushback—both from the public and elected officials—to the Amazon deal, Cuomo has made clear that he was unhappy with how the whole thing went down. </p>
<p id="Ri6mNl">“I do believe Amazon should’ve stayed and fought the opposition,” he said on the <em>Brian Lehrer Show </em>earlier this week. “It was a vocal minority opposition.” A <a href="https://scri.siena.edu/2019/02/12/majority-support-nys-deal-with-amazon/">Siena College poll</a> conducted in early February showed that 56 percent of registered New York voters supported the Amazon deal. </p>
<p id="4E4IyJ">Per the <em>Times, </em>part of the campaign to woo Amazon back to New York City also includes an <a href="https://int.nyt.com/data/documenthelper/640-amazon-ad-nyt/23be553f1bef2065302d/optimized/full.pdf#page=1">open letter</a>, which was due to be published as a full-page ad in that newspaper on Friday, asking the company to reconsider its decision to leave New York. The letter, paid for by the Partnership for New York City (a nonprofit that “represents the city’s business leadership and its largest private sector employers,” per its website), says that the anger of a vocal minority shouldn’t stop the company from doing business with New York City. </p>
<aside id="TMdHbp"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Amazon HQ2 and NYC: A timeline of the botched deal","url":"https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/18/18226681/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-timeline"}]}'></div></aside><p id="KMVSuM">“We know the public debate that followed the announcement of the Long Island City project was rough and not very welcoming,” the letter reads. “Opinions are strong in New York—sometimes strident. We consider it part of the New York charm! But when we commit to a project as important as this, we figure out how to get it done in a way that works for everyone.”</p>
<p id="9XzpD3">The letter was signed by a number of corporate CEOs, civic leaders (including former NYC mayor David Dinkins), union leaders, and representatives from NYCHA housing in Long Island City, among others. It also guarantees that Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio will do whatever they can to move the process along at both the state and city level. (It’s unclear how de Blasio, who penned a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/16/opinion/amazon-new-york-bill-de-blasio.html?smtyp=cur&smid=tw-nytimes"><em>Times </em>op-ed</a> blasting Amazon for its unwillingness to work with NYC, feels about this.) </p>
<p id="bxqoGM">Additionally, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the majority leader of the state Senate, <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny-metro-amazon-union-cuomo-20190223-story.html">withdrew her nomination</a> of vocal Amazon critic Sen. Mike Gianaris to the Public Authorities Control Board, which would have to approve the Amazon deal. Instead, she nominated Leroy Comrie, another Queens state senator, </p>
<p id="HjTfBl">Alas, despite all of these efforts, “Amazon executives gave no sense that it would reconsider,” according to the <em>Times.</em></p>
<aside id="dzyC8E"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"ny-curbed"}'></div></aside>
https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/28/18245306/amazon-hq2-nyc-andrew-cuomo-jeff-bezosAmy Plitt2019-02-28T12:48:12-05:002019-02-28T12:48:12-05:00Amazon’s NYC departure leaves Long Island City development site’s future uncertain
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/arOnKkO7VUVIX5QPg7CuZP11uVo=/83x0:1418x1001/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63145824/12_Kensinger_LIC_Amazon_DSC_6549.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Part of the Long Island City site owned by Plaxall that Amazon had chosen for its HQ2 campus. | <a class="ql-link" href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/29/18117309/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-new-york-anable-basin-photo-essay" target="_blank">Nathan Kensinger</a></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A parcel of land on the Long Island City waterfront was due to get housing and schools before Amazon swooped in</p> <p id="r1UvA7">When Amazon <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/5/18064152/amazon-hq2-search-new-york-city-finalist">announced in November</a> that it had chosen Long Island City for half of its new North American headquarters, there was an unintended side consequence: Two development projects that would have brought thousands of units of planned housing, a new school, and light industrial space to the neighborhood <a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/albany/story/2018/11/15/amazon-deal-will-disrupt-plans-for-affordable-housing-on-long-island-city-sites-700784">were cast aside</a>. </p>
<p id="opnCgg">Then, the tech giant changed its plans and <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled">abandoned</a> its <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/29/18117309/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-new-york-anable-basin-photo-essay">proposed New York campus</a>—and onlookers wondered if the original development plans would suddenly become relevant again. But two weeks after Amazon’s U-turn, it’s unclear what will happen to that piece of prime real estate. </p>
<p id="unafJy">The area in question is located <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/29/18117309/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-new-york-anable-basin-photo-essay">on the Long Island City waterfront</a> near Anable Basin. Part of it is owned by plastics company-turned-landlord Plaxall, which—before the Amazon brouhaha—was <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2017/11/14/16652104/long-island-city-anable-basin-rezoning-affordable-housing">seeking a rezoning</a> that would allow up to just shy of 5,000 apartments, 1,250 of which would be below market rate, along with a 700-seat school and 335,500 square feet of creative production and light manufacturing space. At an adjacent, city-owned site, developer TF Cornerstone was <a href="https://www.nycedc.com/press-release/new-york-works-nycedc-announces-plan-bring-first-its-kind-industrial-commercial">slated to build</a> 250 below-market-rate apartments and 750 market-rate units, along with a 600-seat school, 100,000 square feet of light industrial space, and 400,000 square feet of commercial space. </p>
<p id="stD5Aa">Those plans are now in flux. After Amazon made it clear that they wouldn’t need the space, the developers behind the projects and City Hall have not committed to taking the prior plans off the shelf. A spokesperson for Plaxall declined to comment on if it would pursue the company’s original plans. (Plaxall’s leadership on February 14—the date of Amazon’s Valentine’s Day breakup with the city—issued a joint statement saying they were “extremely disappointed” by Amazon walking away from the HQ2 deal). A spokesperson for TF Cornerstone, meanwhile, referred questions on next steps for the site to the city. </p>
<p id="oQhTkj">City Hall spokesperson Jane Meyer said that the city remains “committed to working with leaders across the city to deliver schools, housing, parks and more to their neighborhoods.”</p>
<p id="XoDHIl">“We are currently assessing next steps for development in Long Island City and hope to hear constructive proposals from the Council Member,” she said. </p>
<p id="DoYgON">At a Crain’s breakfast Friday, Economic Development Corp. President James Patchett said that, with Amazon’s abandonment of its Long Island City office deal, he would “love to pursue” the previously planned mixed-use project, though did not say one way or another on what course of action the city would opt to take. </p>
<p id="mHju3L">Jimmy Van Bramer, the City Council member who represents the affected area (and was one of the most vocal critics of Amazon’s HQ2 deal), told Curbed he had unspecified “concerns” over the original proposals “that would need to be fixed,” and that he hasn’t been involved in talks about either one as of late. </p>
<p id="yugrig">“No one has contacted me yet about reviving such plans,” Van Bramer said in statement to Curbed. In the past, he had expressed his disapproval for both the Plaxall and TF Cornerstone projects, <a href="https://qns.com/story/2018/03/09/lic-residents-rally-against-citys-waterfront-plan/">telling QNS last March</a> that the latter would be “dead on arrival” as it was originally proposed. As for the former, Van Bramer said the city told Plaxall that he “was making [the project] incredibly difficult to get done,” according to <a href="https://nypost.com/2018/11/14/this-local-business-is-the-real-winner-in-amazons-new-york-deal/">the <em>New York Post</em></a>. </p>
<p id="zFmrzW">Van Bramer told Curbed that should those proposals be revived, he will “thoroughly study the proposals” and field feedback from residents and stakeholders. </p>
<p id="WzmYXM">“I will continue fighting with our community for the guaranteed public open space, new schools, affordable housing, infrastructure improvements and other public utilities that LIC has always deserved,” he added. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/HBQP9ikqqlsOMdOUHbEDC9tMr8A=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/9679171/AB_Basin.jpg">
<cite>Renderings by WXY architecture + urban design</cite>
<figcaption>A rendering of the Plaxall site in Long Island City from November 2017, when the project was first announced.</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="rAxeeX">Should he give one or both projects the thumbs down, it would not be the first time Van Bramer has blocked new homes from being built in his district. In 2016, Phipps Houses, a not-for-profit developer, sought permission to build a 10-story, 100 percent below-market-rate residential project in Sunnyside, but <a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/city-hall/story/2016/09/phipps-houses-withdraws-controversial-rezoning-application-in-queens-105599">withdrew its application</a> after the Council member <a href="https://sunnysidepost.com/van-bramer-to-block-phipps-210-unit-development-plan-essentially-kills-proposal">announced his opposition</a> to the proposal. At the time, he <a href="https://sunnysidepost.com/van-bramer-to-block-phipps-210-unit-development-plan-essentially-kills-proposal">said</a> the project was too tall (“Ten stories is out of character and inconsistent with the rest of the neighborhood”), and that the developer <a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/city-hall/story/2016/09/phipps-houses-withdraws-controversial-rezoning-application-in-queens-105599">did not meet with community leaders</a> and failed to address their concerns. </p>
<p id="xWkyyc">State senator Mike Gianaris—who, like Van Bramer, helped lead the high-profile battle against the Amazon deal, but does not have a voice in the city’s land use review procedure—took a slightly different tune, saying that the process of approving those projects would be more open than the HQ2 deal. “There was a plan that was moving through the normal land-use process that was responsive to the needs of that community, in the sense that they were adding school space, and they were making sure that there was an affordable housing component to it,” he told Curbed. “It was going through the process in a much more open and collective way.”</p>
<p id="MZVwrE">“The underlying problems of that neighborhood persist, which is the need for affordability and housing and better mass transit and school space,” Gianaris added. “We need to make sure the neighborhood can accommodate any additional presence that might be placed there.”</p>
<p id="Cm2zKI">If pursued, the TF Cornerstone and Plaxall projects are poised to attract much more attention than they may have previously. Fresh faces on the New York political scene—including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a vocal HQ2 critic, and IDC challengers like freshman state Sens. Julia Salazar and Zellnor Myrie—have consistently spoken out about the ills of the real estate industry’s influence on politics, focusing their housing platforms on rent controls and tenant protection, and <a href="https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/albany/story/2019/02/01/real-estate-faces-a-new-world-order-and-its-less-friendly-than-the-old-one-835191">swearing off</a> donations from industry bigwigs.</p>
<p id="VogugE">Ocasio-Cortez, for example, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbDx1rD30HQ">spoke</a> <a href="http://www.qchron.com/editions/central/cb-votes-down-nd-street-rezoning-pitch/article_7be43161-d1d5-5789-a9fc-99ae5bd85fe9.html">out</a> against a fairly modest proposed rezoning that would have allowed for an 13-story building in Jackson Heights. Roughly two weeks after she won her primary, local Council Member Francisco Moya, who previously <a href="https://jacksonheightspost.com/moya-declares-support-for-82nd-st-building-after-agreement-with-developers">supported</a> the proposal, <a href="https://jacksonheightspost.com/developer-withdraws-rezoning-application-will-construct-smaller-building-on-82nd-st-instead">told Politico</a> and the developer that he opposed the project, prompting the latter to withdraw the application and build the development as-of-right. (Moya maintained Ocasio-Cortez’s election did not influence his about-face on the project.)</p>
<p id="FNFiIj">Additionally, City Council speaker Corey Johnson—who worked for a developer before his City Council tenure and owes his current job in large part to real estate-friendly Crowley—recently pledged to no longer accept real estate cash (specifically, “real estate developers or anyone employed at their firms”), as did newly elected Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, a former tenant organizer and landlord. Williams and Moya, who sit on the Council’s zoning and franchises subcommittee chair, have also each <a href="https://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20180806/REAL_ESTATE/180809954/councilman-pledges-freeze-on-rezoning-but-lacks-power-to-enforce">called for a moratorium</a> on neighborhood-wide rezonings—something many progressives have for years regarded as a giveaway to developers—and called for the city to conduct a <a href="https://www.kingscountypolitics.com/local-lawmakers-say-furture-rezonings-must-include-racial-impact-study/">racial impact study</a> before those move forward. </p>
<aside id="MpKznr"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Amazon HQ2 and NYC: A timeline of the botched deal","url":"https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/18/18226681/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-timeline"}]}'></div></aside><p id="r2loUR">Many of those same players organized against the Amazon HQ2 deal, putting pressure on local pols like Van Bramer and Gianaris—some of whom in 2017 courted Amazon—to be outspoken deal antagonists, creating a cauldron that spooked Amazon executives out of what was once seen as a done deal.</p>
<p id="HJayxV">These are all considerations for Plaxall, TF Cornerstone, and the city to mull should they proceed with their original plans for Anable Basin—a fired up, organized coalition could lead to more community attention, according to Armando Moritz-Chapelliquen, campaign coordinator for Equitable Economic Development at the Association for Neighborhood & Housing Development.</p>
<p id="FEYtEY">“I think there’s a scenario where this is just a run-of-the-mill rezoning, where a couple of different stakeholders will express support or opposition, it basically follows the format we’ve seen in other places. I think that it’s a possibility, but I don’t think it’s a very likely one,” he said. “I don’t think, now that Amazon’s not going to Anable Basin, that everyone’s going to pack up and leave, because the community opposition to this was very real, so I think the community members who mobilized around Amazon are now going to be like ‘Okay, well we’re still here in the neighborhood, so what’s happening in its place?’”</p>
<p id="SNjc8B">But Moritz-Chapelliquen doesn’t believe that the attitude of those community members would necessarily be one of recalcitrance, blocking any sort of development on the site. Amazon’s aborted Long Island City waterfront plans—which drew pushback for a variety of reasons, among them the amount of mostly as-of-right tax incentives they were set to receive, a fear the jobs wouldn’t go to New Yorkers, and that it evaded the community-feedback-intensive land use review process—he said, “presents a real opportunity for us to see what community-driven economic development looks like.” </p>
<aside id="C3UM7s"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"curbed_national"}'></div></aside>
https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/28/18244733/amazon-long-island-city-plaxall-realty-developmentSam Raskin2019-02-18T11:45:00-05:002019-02-18T11:45:00-05:00In Long Island City, mixed reactions to Amazon’s abrupt HQ2 about-face
<figure>
<img alt="After Local Opposition, Amazon Cancels Plans For Major Campus In New York" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/WdjZqX3JUJpykTl0z90R2n4DXEw=/311x0:5286x3731/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63070062/1124899029.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>“I think they were pennywise and pound foolish”</p> <p id="0jbvdx">With the sudden <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled">end of the Amazon era</a> in New York, city and state politicians either pinned blame, took credit, or tried to figure out how the city once <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/16/18098589/amazon-hq2-nyc-queens-long-island-city-explained">had a deal</a>, and then didn’t have a deal, to be one-half of the tech giant’s new North American headquarters. </p>
<p id="2TK5eT">But on the streets of western Queens the day after the company’s sudden pull out, life went on as normal, as people walked their dogs, fixed their mopeds, and waited for the bus. Plenty of neighborhood residents had <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18225110/amazon-hq2-nyc-deal-canceled-reactions">opinions</a> about Amazon’s decision, but true to form for a controversial development project, there was no one answer as to whether the planned corporate campus would have been worth the money, or what the best next step would be for the land that development would have occupied.</p>
<p id="yvqXsy">In a plaza at the Queensbridge Houses, just blocks from where a pro-Amazon press conference was held last Monday, resident Joan Jordan told Curbed she was ready to welcome Amazon. “I think it was a good idea to have that come out here so that people could get jobs,” she explained. </p>
<p id="QUw0kK">“I didn’t see anyone up here against it,” she said, noting that she missed canvassers in the massive housing project last weekend. “Down by Hunter’s Point, I saw those people complaining about it, No one from up here.”</p>
<p id="FdZxbD">On Jackson Avenue near MOMA PS1, LIC resident Ninand Faterperkar, who was walking his dog, told Curbed the city’s elected officials didn’t do enough to preserve the deal. “It comes down to the political leadership around here,” he said. “They didn’t take into account the future and how it should be built around this amazing neighborhood.” </p>
<p id="jZ2BDg">Faterpekar wasn’t the only person who blamed politics for the end of the development. “I think they were pennywise and pound foolish,” an employee at Citigroup, who asked for anonymity to avoid workplace retaliation, said as she left the Citi building, where Amazon was due to take over about 1 million square feet of space. “There was ego involved because they weren’t included to begin with, so I think it was more political posturing,” she said. And the tax breaks, while not ideal, “should have been a negotiating point, not a shut it down point.” </p>
<p id="8KhbND">For supporters of the project, the tax breaks that went into luring Amazon were just a fact of life. “One hand washes the other,” Jerome Hopkins, a Long Island City native, said about Amazon getting offered a cash grant, and being eligible for tax breaks in exchange for meeting certain hiring goals.</p>
<p id="Cs47XR">“I think [the tax abatement] is sort of normal; companies of that magnitude come into communities, they usually get some tax incentives,” Prince Evans, a Queens native who works in e-commerce, told Curbed. “The employees are gonna generate taxes on that end, it’s kind of a tradeoff.” As for whether there was anything that could have been done to save the deal, Evans said that the city could have “opened our arms a bit more,” but also that Amazon could have been more interested in bargaining with area residents</p>
<p id="ptccNw">Of course, not everyone was ready to roll out the red carpet of course. “$3 billion in tax breaks was kind of a big, big deal,” Bardie Cunie told Curbed while waiting for the bus on his way back from work. “We pay a lot of taxes in New York, you know that. You can find other ways to create new jobs.”</p>
<p id="c2LyMN">Luxury goods manufacturer Ally Rosson, who is leaving her LIC manufacturing space this spring because her landlord was likely going to upgrade the building before Amazon’s arrival, said she was “pissed as hell” about the tax breaks the company was getting. “I didn’t like how they made the deal behind closed doors,” she said. “I don’t like that kind of politics.“ She did, however, tell Curbed that she thought the corporate campus would be an upgrade for the area, and that she was hopeful the next plan for the land would lean business over residential. Previously, <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2017/11/14/16652104/long-island-city-anable-basin-rezoning-affordable-housing">the campus site</a> and <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2017/7/29/16059892/anable-basin-long-island-city-waterfront-development">the nearby land</a> in Anable Basin were earmarked for mixed-use developments that would have added 6,000 apartments to the neighborhood. </p>
<p id="0MOLXc">That wasn’t the case for Joseph Genkins, a Queensbridge Houses resident who was working on his moped on Vernon Boulevard. “We’ll find jobs somewhere else,” he said. “We can always find jobs, there’s so many factories around here already. There’s FedEX, UPS, we’ve got stuff like that around here.”</p>
<p id="xsM4nI">He believes the neighborhood needs better housing and neighborhood services. “We need more residential, less industrial,” he said. “We’ve got Con Edison right across the street from us, all down there is factories until you hit 44th Drive. You cross the Pulaski to Greenpoint, it’s so beautiful out there. It’s all residential, clean beautiful living. We have nothing around here. The closest pizza shop to us is down Vernon.” </p>
<aside id="3WJkpn"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"ny-curbed"}'></div></aside>
https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/18/18229407/amazon-hq2-cancel-queens-long-island-city-reactionsDave Colon2019-02-18T10:46:03-05:002019-02-18T10:46:03-05:00Amazon HQ2 and NYC: A timeline of the botched deal
<figure>
<img alt="Amazon Reportedly Reconsidering Long Island City Headquarters" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2NY43eR0LcuDRHtyDsG7hSYbrjw=/211x0:3580x2527/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63069935/1128538213.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>How the deal came to be, and came to fall apart</p> <p id="dbzmpD">It took Amazon nearly a year to select the two cities that would house its second, split-up <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-queens/archives">North American headquarters</a>, and only three months for one of those deals—with New York City—to fall apart. </p>
<p id="fRQl4A">The e-commerce giant, whose CEO is the richest man in the world, <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled">announced</a> (on Valentine’s Day, no less) that thanks to the <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/8/18217129/amazon-hq2-new-york-long-island-city-reconsider">fierce backlash</a> to its HQ2 plans, it would no longer bring a new corporate campus—and 25,000 planned jobs—to Long Island City. </p>
<p id="bCtTgW">In the aftermath of the company’s decision, plenty of people are playing the blame game: Some see Amazon as the problem; others blame the politicians (at both the city and state level) who opposed the deal; and others see the misconceptions about the deal (such as how the incentives promised to Amazon would be doled out) as the problem. </p>
<p id="XF0MzW">But how did we get here? Looking back at the brief history of the HQ2 deal, there are clues that it wasn’t going to be an easy win for the e-commerce giant. Check that all out below. </p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="LtOxpn">
<h4 id="uV9NNZ">September 7, 2017</h4>
<p id="XCppkt">Amazon <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2017/9/7/16267162/amazon-new-headquarters-cities-whole-foods">announced</a> that it will build a second, 50,000-employee strong headquarters, and will accept proposals from cities who are interested in welcoming Jeff Bezos & Co. The tech giant estimates that it’ll cost about $5 billion to build the new HQ2, as it’s quickly dubbed. New York says it’ll throw its hat in the ring, with the state’s economic development arm <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2017/9/7/16270440/amazon-hq2-new-york-tech-hub">saying</a> it will do “everything we can” to win Amazon’s attention.</p>
<h4 id="NhEYKP">September 27, 2017</h4>
<p id="Gaeioq">After soliciting proposals, New York City’s Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) announced that 23 separate neighborhoods have made the case for why they should become HQ2’s home. </p>
<div class="c-float-right"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/g2MtyRMN9xEcCr6psRaHK12p7XQ=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13882877/NYCEDC_NightAerials_15.jpg">
<cite>Courtesy of NYCEDC</cite>
</figure>
</div>
<h4 id="Gv2FsM">October 18, 2017</h4>
<p id="pyvQ0l">The day before bids for HQ2 are due, New York City landmarks—including One World Trade Center and the Empire State building—<a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2017/10/18/16497474/amazon-nyc-empire-state-one-world-orange-lights">light up in so-called “Amazon Orange.”</a> It’s one of the less ridiculous gimmicks municipalities do to <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2017/10/19/16504426/amazon-hq2-bid-urban-planning">try and woo Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos</a>. </p>
<h4 id="NPhgO8">October 19, 2017</h4>
<p id="b5S0Iu">Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2017/10/18/16501576/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-rfp-manhattan-brooklyn">announce</a> that the city has submitted its HQ2 bid, naming four different areas—Long Island City, the Financial District, Midtown West, and the “Brooklyn Tech Triangle” (an area comprising Downtown Brooklyn, Dumbo, and the Brooklyn Navy Yard)—as possible sites. “The case for New York City is simple: we are the global capital of commerce, culture and innovation,” de Blasio said in a letter to Bezos. </p>
<h4 id="f3DXeA">January 18, 2018</h4>
<p id="1qsc4X">After a few quiet months, Amazon <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2018/1/18/16905196/amazon-headquarters-hq2-finalists">announces</a> that it has selected 20 finalist cities for HQ2, <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/1/18/16905132/amazon-hq2-finalists-new-york-newark-tech-hub">including New York City and Newark, NJ</a>. They’re in competition with other major municipalities like <a href="https://chicago.curbed.com/2017/10/4/16425628/amazon-hq2-headquarters-chicago">Chicago</a>, Dallas, <a href="https://la.curbed.com/2018/1/18/16905670/amazon-headquarters-los-angeles-finalist-hq2">Los Angeles</a>, and <a href="https://dc.curbed.com/2018/11/17/18100036/crystal-city-arlington-virginia-amazon-hq2-news">Washington, D.C.</a>; the list also includes some outliers, including Indianapolis and Montgomery County, MD. </p>
<p id="iTzFAU">At the same time, a group of social justice advocates—encompassing members from groups like Make the Road New York and Showing Up for Racial Justice, among others—make their opposition known, writing an open letter that states, in part, “if Amazon is going to continue to grow its operations across New York City and State, it must improve its business model and its treatment of communities and workers.”</p>
<h4 id="fKDZ00">January 24, 2018</h4>
<p id="H0HUm8">A former Battery Park City official <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/1/24/16929084/amazon-hq2-new-york-battery-park-city-fill">unveiled</a> a modest HQ2 proposal: build it on landfill near that lower Manhattan neighborhood. Charles J. Urstadt says that by using fill to extend Battery Park City to the north, the city could create a new 60-acre parcel for Amazon. “This plan would create a sylvan, campus-like blank slate—all overlooking the Hudson River—on which Amazon could design its own ideal headquarters,” he claims. (It does not end up becoming a reality.)</p>
<h4 id="Esq63z">November 4, 2018</h4>
<p id="3GNgCz">Amazon spends the better part of the year meeting with officials in cities across the U.S., and in November, the <em>Wall Street Journal </em><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-in-late-stage-talks-with-cities-including-crystal-city-va-dallas-new-york-city-for-hq2-1541359441">reported</a> that New York City is among the final-final contenders. The company is reportedly scoping out Long Island City as the top NYC site, which the city touted for its “13 million square feet of first-class real estate,” along with its proximity to airports, transit lines, and cultural institutions. </p>
<h4 id="L84UlS">November 5, 2018</h4>
<p id="KYVmtX">Andrew “Amazon” Cuomo is <a href="https://twitter.com/JimmyVielkind/status/1059521845433643008?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1059521845433643008&ref_url=about%3Asrcdoc">forever immortalized</a>, as the New York governor crows that he’ll “change his name … if that’s what it takes.” </p>
<h4 id="pUdKHF">November 9, 2018</h4>
<p id="ESh0Zt">As the rumors of HQ2’s imminent arrival in NYC intensify, Crain’s <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/9/18080420/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-rezoning-andrew-cuomo">reported</a> that the company intends to bypass the city’s uniform land use review procedure (ULURP)—a cumbersome process, but one that gives the City Council and other local pols some oversight for major developments. </p>
<p id="KXIpK2">At the same time, there are additional <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/7/18072094/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-anable-basin">rumors</a> that a waterfront site owned by Plaxall is in the running for Amazon’s campus. The site was previously earmarked for a rezoning, allowing for the creation of housing, schools, and other public benefits. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="After Local Opposition, Amazon Cancels Plans For Major Campus In New York" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/T_WzC7Oekfb8QhMIyHVF4dSymiw=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13769211/1124906476.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images</cite>
</figure>
<h4 id="izxSvT">November 13, 2018</h4>
<p id="uoVRl6">The rumors become reality when Amazon <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2018/11/5/17111874/amazon-hq2-headquarters-winner-new-york-queens-arlington-virginia">announces</a> that it will split H2 between two areas: <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/5/18064152/amazon-hq2-search-new-york-city-finalist">Long Island City</a>, and the neighborhood of <a href="https://dc.curbed.com/2018/11/13/18090566/dc-amazon-hq2-crystal-city-long-island">Crystal City</a> in Arlington, VA. While the full details of the deal weren’t immediately made clear, the city and state promise at least $1.7 billion in economic incentives to sweeten the deal for the tech giant. </p>
<p id="ObSgRj">The <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/13/18090668/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-opposition-nyc">backlash</a> began quickly; newly elected New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is among those who question the deal, namely the tax breaks and grants Amazon will receive to move to NYC. </p>
<h4 id="se0PMs">November 14, 2018</h4>
<p id="rrG7uX">The first of many protests against HQ2 is held in Long Island City, with members of advocacy groups, unions, and elected officials all in attendance. Two local pols who’d previously supported the deal—City Council member Jimmy van Bramer, and State Senator Michael Gianaris—attend, foreshadowing the larger fight to come. </p>
<p id="OjOcSt">“When Jeff Bezos needed $3 billion, the governor and the mayor found it sure damn quick,” van Bramer said during the rally. “The governor and the mayor conspired secretly to cut a deal with Jeff Bezos to the exclusion of everyone else. This is the ultimate case of ‘three men in a room.’”</p>
<h4 id="Sp9pJD">November 19, 2018</h4>
<p id="Ga9mwG">The <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/19/18102926/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-cuomo-op-ed-alicia-glen">backlash to the backlash begins</a>: Cuomo <a href="https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/op-ed-governor-andrew-m-cuomo">published an “op-ed”</a> on his official website, ostensibly to lay out his case for why the HQ2 deal is good for New York, but with a healthy heaping of scorn for those who’ve criticized the deal. Deputy Mayor Alicia Glen gave an interview to <em>New York</em> in which she argued that the deal was, in fact, fair and democratic (despite the lack of input from city officials, as you’d get with a ULURP). And urbanists, including <a href="http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/11/amazon-cant-monopolize-new-york-city.html?utm_source=tw"><em>New York </em>architecture critic Justin Davidson</a> and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/16/opinion/amazon-hq2-new-york.html">architect Vishaan Chakrabarti</a>, defend the deal as good for New York City. </p>
<h4 id="hK9t7X">November 20, 2018</h4>
<p id="rhjvsO">The <em>Wall Street Journal </em><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-employees-join-the-rush-to-buy-long-island-city-condos-1542709801?mod=article_inline">reported</a> that a handful of Amazon employees purchased condos in Long Island City <em>before </em>the HQ2 deal was made public, giving its critics even more fodder that it would <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/14/18091872/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-home-rent-prices-nyc-predictions">drive up home prices</a> and real estate speculation in the neighborhood. </p>
<h4 id="z0lhRt">December 11, 2018</h4>
<p id="JDm9X4">The city’s <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/11/18136041/amazon-hq2-new-york-proposal-jeff-bezos">HQ2 bid is made public</a> on a website (since taken down) published by the NYCEDC. And it’s a doozy: Governors Island is pitched as a retreat for Amazon employees, Milton Glaser’s famous “I ❤️ NY” logo is <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/11/18136266/i-heart-ny-logo-amazon-hq2">given a makeover</a>, and then there are the renderings: </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/TGO99ef6arMxoGDWuU8EKKtAEWI=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13618426/Screen_Shot_2018_12_11_at_11.15.24_AM.png">
</figure>
<p id="RGQiIR">That same day, de Blasio and Cuomo <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/11/18136323/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-community-advisory-committee">announce the formation of a community advisory committee</a> that will solicit input from locals and area stakeholders on the HQ2 deal. The 45-member group was due to have its first meeting in January. (Welp.)</p>
<h4 id="cHqS6U">December 13, 2018</h4>
<p id="evYAmP">The New York City Council <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/13/18139200/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-council-hearing">held the first of two hearings</a> with a panel of Amazon officials and reps from the NYCEDC. The meeting was, unsurprisingly, heated; opponents packed the gallery and unfurled a banner that said “NO TO AMAZON.” Meanwhile, council members interrogated the panel about everything from the promised tax breaks to the rumored helipad at the HQ2 site. Ultimately, though, it was “less about oversight than venting—a chance for both sides to stake out their positions, ask ridiculous questions, and give ridiculous answers,” as Dave Colon reported. </p>
<p id="C4fYAd">“If you’re proud of the deal, if you’re proud of coming to new York City, you should want to answer every question New Yorkers have,” City Council Speaker Corey Johnson told the panel. “It should not be a two-step tango to meet with us.” (Foreshadowing again.) </p>
<h4 id="w98f8P">December 18, 2018</h4>
<p id="lmYXpH">StreetEasy <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/18/18146208/long-island-city-market-report-amazon-hq2">released a report</a> showing a spike in Long Island City home prices in the five weeks following the HQ2 announcement. After a slow October, more than 18 percent of homes on the market increased their prices. </p>
<h4 id="Xil0ny">December 20, 2018</h4>
<p id="XWKnYC">The backlash grows stronger: Three City Council members—van Bramer, Brad Lander, and Jumaane Williams—<a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/20/18150100/amazon-hq2-nda-new-york-city-council">introduced legislation</a> that sought to “prohibit New York City from signing such non-disclosure agreements in any future economic development deals, preventing the secret dissemination of proprietary city information.” The bill took aim at the “Hunger Games-style bidding process” that Amazon used to extract information from the cities that submitted proposals, while silencing those who participated in it. </p>
<h4 id="pPbrrb">December 27, 2018</h4>
<p id="TlZVMp">City Comptroller Scott Stringer <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/27/18157567/amazon-hq2-tax-breaks-reap-icap-stringer">asked</a> the NYCEDC to submit specific information that would help him fact check the assertion that Amazon’s Long Island City development would provide a 9-to-1 return on investment, as well as breakdowns on the refundable tax credits Amazon stands to gain through the Relocation and Employment Assistance Program (REAP) and the Industrial and Commercial Abatement Program (ICAP). </p>
<h4 id="IUUBr0">January 5, 2019</h4>
<p id="hfVVTB">Amazon <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/01/05/amazon-details-what-itll-bring-to-long-island-city-in-open-letter/">runs ads</a> in the <em>New York Daily News </em>and the <em>New York Post</em> touting the project’s benefits for the city; fliers hoping to accomplish the same goals are also <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/1/8/18173887/amazon-mails-open-letter-to-new-yorkers-touting-hq2-benefits">mailed to Queens residents</a>. “We want to make sure New Yorkers know the details of our investment and how it benefits them,” an Amazon spokesperson told Curbed at the time. </p>
<p id="k8KRRK">The fliers are not universally well-received, however: </p>
<div id="WPBjp6">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">You know exactly where you can put this, <a href="https://twitter.com/amazon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@amazon</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/astoria?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#astoria</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/queens?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#queens</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/lic?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#lic</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/noAmazonNYC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#noAmazonNYC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/stayout?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#stayout</a> <a href="https://t.co/MqPi8INa09">pic.twitter.com/MqPi8INa09</a></p>— vermeerish (@vermeerish) <a href="https://twitter.com/vermeerish/status/1082449652178399232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2019</a>
</blockquote>
<script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div>
<h4 id="lhfmCi">January 30, 2019</h4>
<p id="dGBzcD">The City Council held its second hearing with NYCEDC and Amazon reps, and it goes no better than the first one. As we <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/1/30/18204085/city-council-spars-with-amazon-edc-over-hq2-cost-concerns">reported</a>, “Council members blasted the officials with a laundry list of concerns including Amazon’s union opposition, its investment in the city, and accusations that city and state officials failed to accurately calculate the costs of bringing the conglomerate to Long Island City.” </p>
<p id="1vlaMD">During the hearing, it’s revealed that Amazon could receive another $987 million from the city in the form of tax breaks (although the company did <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/1/18207024/amazon-hq2-opportunity-zones-new-york">reveal</a> that it would not take advantage of the fact that the area in which HQ2 was set to land was <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/16/18095578/amazon-hq2-new-york-opportunity-zones-long-island-city">designated an “opportunity zone”</a> under a new tax law). At one point, council speaker Corey Johnson asked, “Why do you need our money?,” echoing protestors who were both in and outside the council chambers that day. </p>
<h4 id="U4CiEI">February 4, 2019</h4>
<p id="OVi1BG">The project was dealt a blow by the New York state Senate: Majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-york-state-senator-who-opposes-amazon-deal-nominated-to-board-with-sway-over-project-11549323182">nominated</a> Michael Gianaris—who, by this point, had become a vociferous opponent of the deal—to the Public Authorities Control Board, a five-member committee with veto power over the HQ2 deal. The move was widely seen as the state Senate’s attempt to exert some control over the deal, with Cuomo’s camp <a href="https://twitter.com/ZackFinkNews/status/1092522072096604160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1092522072096604160&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fgothamist.com%2F2019%2F02%2F05%2Famazon_pacb_cuomo_gianaris_showdown.php">none too pleased</a> by the appointment. (Cuomo would have had the power to veto Gianaris’s seat, however.) </p>
<h4 id="bhFe2G">February 6, 2019</h4>
<p id="5J9NIb">The Amazon HQ2 battle became a talking point in the race for New York City’s public advocate. Many of the more than 15 candidates for the position come out against the deal; during the first televised debate, several hopefuls—including former City Council speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, and current council member Jumaane Williams—<a href="https://nypost.com/2019/02/06/public-advocate-candidates-blast-amazon-deal-in-debate/">blasted the deal</a>. New York state Assembly member Ron Kim, meanwhile, uses his #NoAmazon stance as a <a href="https://twitter.com/rontkim/status/1096031741461086208">talking point in his own mailers</a>—which began to land in mailboxes the day the deal was called off. </p>
<h4 id="fYozr9">February 7, 2019</h4>
<p id="9w90WY">Gianaris told <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90303048/the-war-over-amazons-hq2-is-playing-out-in-locals-mailboxes">Fast Company</a> that he’s sending his own fliers decrying the HQ2 deal as a corrective to what he calls Amazon’s “misinformation campaign.” The flier took a red pen to Amazon’s own mailers, and encouraged people to tell Bezos to “stay in Seattle.” </p>
<p id="co3fMG">“Whatever it takes, I’m going to make sure that the people of this community are fully educated and aware of what’s happening and not going to fall for Amazon’s propaganda,” Gianaris told Fast Company. (Foreshadowing, once again.) </p>
<h4 id="UADgtj">February 8, 2019</h4>
<p id="1oECB5">The first rumblings of trouble in paradise begin: The <em>Washington Post—which is owned by Bezos—</em>reported that <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/8/18217129/amazon-hq2-new-york-long-island-city-reconsider">Amazon was now reconsidering</a> its plans to bring HQ2 to NYC. “The question is whether it’s worth it if the politicians in New York don’t want the project, especially with how people in Virginia and Nashville have been so welcoming,” one of the <em>Post</em>’s unnamed sources said<em>. </em>Cuomo immediately goes on the defensive, stating that<em> </em>“If Amazon does not come to New York it’s because of the political opposition.” </p>
<h4 id="HizE8n">February 12, 2019</h4>
<p id="rZDkc2">Pro-HQ2 voices attempted to bring attention to the project’s supporters, <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/12/18221582/amazon-hq2-nyc-long-island-city-rally-queensbridge-houses">holding a rally</a> near the Queensbridge Houses in Long Island City to make it clear that there are New Yorkers who’d welcome Amazon with open arms. “We have a cadre of residents that are standing behind us; all of which understand the potential of development of our communities,” Bishop Mitchell Taylor, one of the deal’s staunch defenders, said during the rally. “We need to speak to them and not allow people coming from outside of our community to speak for us. You can’t speak for us.”</p>
<p id="nluKLu">That same day, Siena College <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/02/12/majority-of-new-yorkers-want-amazons-hq2-in-queens-poll/">released the results of a poll</a> showing that 58 percent of registered New York City voters were for the HQ2 deal, while 35 percent were against it. </p>
<h4 id="LzUlAg">February 14, 2019</h4>
<p id="QVf1JD">Everything fell apart on Valentine’s Day: Amazon <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled">announced</a> that it had withdrawn its HQ2 offer, stating that it requires “positive, collaborative relationships with state and local elected officials who will be supportive over the long-term”—essentially confirming that despite seemingly broad public approval, the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/15/nyregion/amazon-hq2-nyc.html?rref=collection%2Fbyline%2Fj.-david-goodman&action=click&contentCollection=undefined&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=collection">lack of fealty from local politicians</a> made working here unattractive. Opponents of the deal <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/02/14/anti-amazon-politicians-heckled-by-business-owners-at-queens-victory-rally/">celebrated</a> in Queens, though some hecklers did make an appearance. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="After Local Opposition, Amazon Cancels Plans For Major Campus In New York" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/_ZPoqTsQHF_7E-vpbTt1tg0kMCg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13882247/1124906413.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images</cite>
</figure>
<p id="xqlHx6">The <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18225110/amazon-hq2-nyc-deal-canceled-reactions">reactions came swiftly</a>, but the responses from Cuomo and de Blasio were especially notable: The former blamed “a small group of politicians [who] put their own narrow political interests above their community.” The latter seemed to blame Amazon, stating that “[w]e gave Amazon the opportunity to be a good neighbor and do business in the greatest city in the world. Instead of working with the community, Amazon threw away that opportunity.”</p>
<p id="XB51Qb">Among the many questions raised by the company’s abrupt about-face is what will happen to the site at Anable Basin, owned by Plaxall, that had been selected for the HQ2 campus. </p>
<h4 id="9r6OOx">February 15, 2019</h4>
<p id="Edq5pf">The worst take so far on the Amazon snafu comes courtesy of David Lichtenstein, CEO of Lightstone Group, who said that the cancelation of the deal was “the worst day for NYC since 9/11 … except this time, the terrorists were elected,” according to <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516509&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftherealdeal.com%2F2019%2F02%2F15%2Flichtenstein-on-amazon-pullout-worst-day-for-nyc-since-9-11%2F&referrer=archive.curbed.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fny.curbed.com%2F2019%2F2%2F18%2F18226681%2Famazon-hq2-new-york-city-timeline" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">the Real Deal</a>.</p>
<h4 id="Kp8JFh">February 16, 2019</h4>
<p id="5Jl1uU">De Blasio pens an <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/16/opinion/amazon-new-york-bill-de-blasio.html?smtyp=cur&smid=tw-nytimes">op-ed for the <em>New York Times</em></a><em> </em>that blames Amazon for its unwillingness to work with New York on a way forward for HQ2. In it, he noted that he “share[s] the frustration about corporate America” that drove many of the deal’s opponents; he also said the dog-and-pony show that was the HQ2 bidding process “exemplified that injustice,” despite participating in said process himself. The trade-off—25,000 new jobs, a possible $27 billion in tax revenue—was too desirable to resist. </p>
<p id="O0uv9j">But, he concludes, “We just witnessed another example of what the concentration of power in the hands of huge corporations leaves in its wake. Let’s change the rules before the next corporation tries to divide and conquer.” </p>
<p id="FNPiMg"><em>Additional reporting by Zoe Rosenberg and Caroline Spivack.</em></p>
<aside id="ERRzqP"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"ny-curbed"}'></div></aside>
https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/18/18226681/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-timelineAmy Plitt2019-02-15T16:54:00-05:002019-02-15T16:54:00-05:00Amazon HQ2 v. NYC is a lesson on the importance of transparency
<figure>
<img alt="After Local Opposition, Amazon Cancels Plans For Major Campus In New York" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/hiIxWvVh1Er8OXDPDRSSX__I4Ag=/317x0:5378x3796/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63061642/1124906476.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A branding expert unpacks how Amazon canceling its New York headquarters impacts the company and city’s image.</p> <p id="kMniQH">As soon as <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled">Amazon canceled plans to build a New York City headquarters</a>, speculation about ripple effects abounded. Was it <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/14/18225077/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-cancelled-plans-reactions-tech-community">a triumph for local activists and tech industry failure</a>? A victory <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18225121/amazon-hq2-nyc-corporate-subsidies">against corporate welfare</a>? A <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18225029/amazon-hq2-nyc-deal-canceled">loss of jobs and economic growth</a>? </p>
<p id="lrqwOe"><a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18225110/amazon-hq2-nyc-deal-canceled-reactions">Reactions were swift</a>, and who “won” or “lost” in this breakup depends on who you ask. It’s all about perception, and amid all of this spin there’s an argument to be made that the only real winner is transparency.</p>
<p id="JXj6s5">Perception was a dominant theme throughout the HQ2 search process, as cities competed with one another to show just how valuable they could be to Amazon on a variety of fronts: their openness to innovation, their quality of life, their robust infrastructure, their unrivaled culture. The <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2018/12/27/18157712/amazon-hq2-bid-tax-breaks-economic-development">pageantry included</a> logos, offers to build universities, and promising special task forces. Essentially, <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2018/11/13/18091542/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-arlington-va-branding">cities were amplifying their brand</a>.</p>
<p id="9IbI7n">The image of a company or place is valuable. According to Geoff Cook, a partner at the strategy and branding studio <a href="https://www.basedesign.com/">Base</a>, Amazon and New York’s images were tarnished because the whole process was shrouded in secrecy. </p>
<p id="AckZae">“With all the brands we work with, we talk about the need for transparency in today’s world,” Cook says. “Because media has become so prevalent and widespread, people see through everything. So, if we think about Amazon or New York City as brand, neither acted with full transparency. In today’s world that’s not acceptable—and certainly not in a public process. And with transparency comes trust.”</p>
<p id="tgOKvb">The entire HQ2 saga has been opaque, with some suggestions that <a href="https://www.popsci.com/amazon-hq2-city-data-collection#page-2">the search was a ploy</a> to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/12/technology/amazon-new-york-hq2-data.html">collect data on cities</a>. Local governments and <a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2018/protestors-amazon-hq2-cities-around-country-demand-transparency-bidding-process/">protestors are challenging the secrecy</a> involved in this type of decision making. The New York City Council is <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/20/18150100/amazon-hq2-nda-new-york-city-council">seeking to bar NDAs in future development deals</a>. Many local leaders—like <a href="https://twitter.com/NYCComptroller/status/1096125308149866496">comptroller Scott Stringer</a>, public advocate candidate <a href="https://twitter.com/MMViverito/status/1096093374954827776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1096093374954827776&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fny.curbed.com%2F2019%2F2%2F14%2F18225110%2Famazon-hq2-nyc-deal-canceled-reactions">Melissa Mark Viverito</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/NYCSpeakerCoJo/status/1096105149225975808">City Council speaker Cory Johnson</a>—have expressed a need for more transparency and public involvement in corporate negotiations moving forward.</p>
<p id="tl9n1S">“Since the outset of this HQ2 process, the Amazon brand has acted like an entitled bully,” Cook says. “If there’s one thing that New York City won’t put up with it’s a bully. … We go to the other side of the coin and how did New York City act? [The opposition] acted arrogantly, basically saying to one of the world’s largest companies, ‘We don’t want you.’”</p>
<p id="ZZe9XY">Meanwhile Google took an entirely different approach for its new <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/17/18144590/google-new-york-city-expansion-st-johns-terminal">$1 billion headquarters in the city</a>. It didn’t turn its headquarters development into a competition and balk when things got tough. From an outsider’s perspective, it acted more like a partner during its planning process, which might augur the future of more successful and sustainable growth for private companies and the city. </p>
<p id="E7AL5M">“It’ll be interesting to see if these companies say, ‘I’m going to follow the lead of Google and follow the leads of companies that have been successful,’ or ‘No it’s too big of a headache, we’ll choose somewhere else,’” Cook says. “That’s where the New York City brand has potentially been damaged.”</p>
<p id="l0yLis">New York has always been an attractive place to do business and the formula to do it successfully in the future will likely involve transparency from all parties.</p>
<p id="3F3ocN">“The world has changed and people today want companies to have a conscience and to be good partners—both economically and socially—to the cities or towns they’re going into,” Cook says. “Companies coming into New York City should follow the macro trend of working together to build a greater good as a partner.”</p>
<aside id="ICQnba"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"ny-curbed"}'></div></aside>
https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/15/18226611/amazon-hq2-new-york-branding-transparencyDiana Budds2019-02-15T14:40:44-05:002019-02-15T14:40:44-05:00De Blasio slams Amazon as ‘disrespectful’ for abandoning HQ2 plans
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Bpe9mGAmCA9VtYawROT77NKRBsI=/288x0:4887x3449/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63060794/GettyImages_971704914.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>An incredulous Mayor Bill de Blasio slammed Amazon and opponents to HQ2 on WNYC Friday. | Drew Angerer/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>“It’s over and it’s astounding and it’s disappointing,” the mayor said</p> <p id="TyfixX">A furious Mayor Bill de Blasio blasted Amazon and opponents Friday for <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled">pulling out</a> of a $3 billion deal that would have brought Amazon’s second North American headquarters to Long Island City.</p>
<p id="v1v4Yn">“It’s over and it’s astounding and it’s disappointing,” de Blasio said on <a href="https://www.wnyc.org/story/askthemayor-amazon-deal-autopsy">WNYC’s The The Brian Lehrer Show</a>. “It’s disrespectful to the people of NYC to get a call after months of attempting to build a productive partnership on behalf of this city, to get a call out of the blue saying, ‘See ya, we’re taking our ball and we’re going home.’”</p>
<p id="2rzHtI">Amazon announced the abrupt about face in a Thursday blog post after months of relentless opposition waged by some elected officials and skeptical residents who felt the deal lacked transparency and gave away too much in a $3 billion incentive package. </p>
<p id="ekLO7r">The mayor and Gov. Andrew Cuomo championed the deal—which was slated to bring at least 25,000 jobs to the city, some $27 billion in tax revenue, and <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled">other commitments</a>. Amazon’s retreat is a major blow to the Mayor’s efforts to make New York City an attractive destination for the technology industry and he wasn’t shy about lashing out at the company and those who opposed the deal.</p>
<p id="yleTK8">“I have a lot of frustration with the opponents because I do not think they represented what their constituents fully needed,” he told Brian Lehrer. “I think they did a disservice, but I have much more frustration with Amazon for just pulling out in the dead of night and not even attempting a dialogue.” </p>
<p id="lHGcSr">The Mayor had discussed HQ2 details with Amazon executives as recently as Monday night and some 24 hours before <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/14/business/economy/amazon-union-cuomo.html">union leaders met with the company</a> to hash out ground rules for how Amazon would respond to workers’ efforts to unionize. </p>
<p id="cEe6Jr">De Blasio went on the defensive when asked if he bungled the deal by negotiating in private and bypassing the typical Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) that requires a New York City Council vote.</p>
<p id="C2aOBe">“If I had said, ‘Hey Amazon, you’re going to have to wait a year and a half for the full land use process.’ I guarantee, I GUAR-AN-TEE they would have said we’re going to Virginia, we’re going to Dallas, we’re going somewhere else,” said de Blasio.</p>
<p id="UXzJv7">An incredulous de Blasio continued his onslaught of anger at critics of how he handled and pushed for the Queens campus.</p>
<p id="WxN41U">“For everyone who said, and they said it with such self-assurance, so many wonderful experts who didn’t know what the hell they were talking about, ‘Oh, Amazon has to be here. Amazon has to be here,’” de Blasio fumed. “Well, guess what, this morning it’s quite clear that Amazon did not have to be here.”</p>
<aside id="bp2qVh"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"ny-curbed"}'></div></aside>
https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/15/18226518/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceled-bill-de-blasioCaroline Spivack2019-02-15T14:16:34-05:002019-02-15T14:16:34-05:00With Amazon HQ2 deal dead, what’s next for Long Island City real estate?
<figure>
<img alt="The waterfront in Long Island City. There is a pier with a sign that reads: Long Island. Behind the sign are many tall apartment buildings." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/OM1krEZPemWq-U88nEN2nKsLZiA=/112x0:1889x1333/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63060639/180504_07_10_26_5DR26228.0.jpg" />
<figcaption><a class="ql-link" href="http://www.metouhey.com" target="_blank">Max Touhey</a></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>“Without Amazon, the future remains very bright”</p> <p id="re9r4h">When Amazon announced in November that it would bring half of its second North American headquarters, colloquially referred to as HQ2, to New York City, developers and brokers gleefully rubbed their hands together, imagining the prospect of thousands of workers—with a reported average salary of $150,000, no less—moving into Long Island City and the surrounding neighborhoods. </p>
<p id="IyL1F5">Interest in the neighborhood’s real estate spiked—there was a huge jump in the number of signed contracts from when Amazon made the announcement to the beginning of February, according to data from Stribling—and sellers raised prices in response to the growing demand. </p>
<p id="nefYQC">Now, with Amazon’s decision to abandon its HQ2 plans in NYC, the mood in the real estate world is (unsurprisingly) more morose; one developer <a href="https://twitter.com/mrkorangy/status/1096434850607910914">reportedly called</a> the company’s withdrawal from New York City “the worst day for NYC since 9/11.” </p>
<p id="8Vxagt">But will it be a disaster for Long Island City’s real estate? “The broad answer: No,” says real estate appraiser Jonathan Miller. “The impact was overhyped, so consequently, the exit will be overhyped.” </p>
<p id="RHtMzp">Eric Benaim, the CEO of Modern Spaces, a brokerage that he says has 70 percent of the market share when it comes to Long Island City listings, concurs. “This is really sad for the people of New York and Queens,” he says, referring to the loss of jobs and tax revenue—and the boost to local businesses—that Amazon could have brought to the neighborhood. But, he continues, “I don’t think it’s going to affect real estate. We were perfectly fine three months ago [before the Amazon announcement], and we’ll be perfectly fine going forward.” </p>
<p id="fkjAP7">Indeed, Long Island City real estate was doing fine—better than fine, from an industry perspective—before Amazon selected it for HQ2. <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2017/6/26/15875702/long-island-city-construction-usa-leader">A 2017 study</a> found that the neighborhood has welcomed more <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/maps/long-island-city-development-boom-construction-map">new apartments</a> (many of those market-rate rentals and condos) since 2010 than any other neighborhood in the county; by 2020, <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/10/29/18038342/brooklyn-queens-residential-construction-boom-2020-projections">at least 6,400 more</a> housing units will debut. And Patrick Smith, a broker with Stribling who’s been tracking Long Island City development since 2006, doesn’t foresee the demand for those apartments lessening. </p>
<p id="HEPifV">“If Amazon came it would’ve been a boon for the real estate industry, there’s no question about that,” he says. But he believes the attention Amazon garnered for the neighborhood was ultimately a “net benefit.” </p>
<p id="knNQ98">“Developers are going to feel disappointed, but developers will always look at the silver lining,” Smith says. </p>
<p id="exZ1k5">There will likely be “a bit of whiplash” in the market, according to Nancy Wu, an economist with StreetEasy. While the firm has a similar outlook as other experts—things will go back to “normal” for LIC—they do see this as a cautionary tale for overeager developers and real estate speculators.</p>
<p id="HR60fU">“The Amazon reversal highlights the risk inherent in speculative investment in real estate in the city,” Wu said in a statement. “While the city has enjoyed swift economic growth, turning a quick profit remains difficult, particularly in areas dense with new development.”</p>
<p id="LK9SMB">That speculative investment, and the possibly higher real estate prices it may have brought to Queens, fueled opponents to the deal, who believed it would make the neighborhood—already one of Queens’s priciest—even more unaffordable. Although prices may not skyrocket as quickly as they would have, Miller cautions against too much optimism that they’ll drop dramatically. </p>
<p id="wWmamd">“The affordability challenge that was a lot of the outcry isn’t going to get better,” he notes. “[Amazon] leaving isn’t going to make housing more affordable in the boroughs.” </p>
<p id="Mw9cqr">But it’s unlikely that the status quo will be too greatly affected. “Amazon would have supercharged the Long Island City real estate market,” says Smith. “But without Amazon, the future remains very bright.” </p>
<aside id="ZvVd5Q"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"ny-curbed"}'></div></aside>
https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/15/18225366/amazon-hq2-new-york-real-estate-long-island-cityAmy Plitt2019-02-14T17:13:23-05:002019-02-14T17:13:23-05:00Amazon cancels HQ2 plans for New York City
<figure>
<img alt="Long Island City’s Faces Changes With Amazon Selecting Neighborhood For New HQ" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/M1WjeLKSNRE6CxV-G2wLS2VqyDk=/308x0:5231x3692/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63053803/1079752462.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The HQ2 deal had come under fire in recent weeks</p> <p id="0GN9Io">Amazon has withdrawn its plans to bring half of its second North American headquarters to New York City. This comes after a <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/8/18217129/amazon-hq2-new-york-long-island-city-reconsider">report last week</a> in the <em>Washington Post t</em>hat the tech giant was reconsidering locating HQ2 in Long Island City as originally planned.</p>
<p id="XiHklI">“For Amazon, the commitment to build a new headquarters requires positive, collaborative relationships with state and local elected officials who will be supportive over the long-term,” the company said <a href="https://blog.aboutamazon.com/company-news/update-on-plans-for-new-york-city-headquarters">in a blog post</a> on Thursday. “While polls show that 70% of New Yorkers support our plans and investment, a number of state and local politicians have made it clear that they oppose our presence and will not work with us to build the type of relationships that are required to go forward with the project we and many others envisioned in Long Island City.”</p>
<p id="nOMWxt">In a statement, Mayor Bill de Blasio took a more aggressive stance toward Amazon than he had in recent weeks, implying that the company wasn’t willing to stick with the process amid opposition. </p>
<p id="bP1Rg3">“You have to be tough to make it in New York City,” his statement reads. “We gave Amazon the opportunity to be a good neighbor and do business in the greatest city in the world. Instead of working with the community, Amazon threw away that opportunity. We have the best talent in the world, and every day we are growing a stronger and fairer economy for everyone. If Amazon can’t recognize what that’s worth, its competitors will.” </p>
<p id="njbWns">Gov. Andrew Cuomo, meanwhile, took aim at the New York State Senate in a statement on the deal’s dissolution.</p>
<p id="An9x1E">“Amazon chose to come to New York because we are the capital of the world and the best place to do business,” his statement reads. “Bringing Amazon to New York diversified our economy away from real estate and Wall Street, further cementing our status as an emerging center for tech and was an extraordinary economic win not just for Queens and New York City, but for the entire region, from Long Island to Albany’s nanotech center. However, a small group politicians put their own narrow political interests above their community—which poll after poll showed overwhelmingly supported bringing Amazon to Long Island City—the state’s economic future and the best interests of the people of this state. The New York State Senate has done tremendous damage. They should be held accountable for this lost economic opportunity.”</p>
<p id="bFbv2Y">State Senate majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/05/nyregion/michael-gianaris-amazon.html">nominated</a> Sen. Michael Gianaris, a vocal critic of the HQ2 deal, to the Public Authorities Control Board, which would ultimately have approval power over the project. His office was responsible for anti-HQ2 fliers that were sent to Queens residents in recent weeks, which he told <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90303048/the-war-over-amazons-hq2-is-playing-out-in-locals-mailboxes">Fast Company</a> was an effort to counteract Amazon’s own “misinformation campaign” (the company has been <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/facing-opposition-amazon-reconsiders-ny-headquarters-site-two-officials-say/2019/02/08/451ffc52-2a19-11e9-b011-d8500644dc98_story.html?utm_term=.1167a943533e">sending its own fliers</a> touting HQ2 to borough residents).</p>
<p id="GMuYrt">“Today’s behavior by Amazon shows why they would have been a bad partner for New York in any event,” Gianaris said in a statement. “Rather than seriously engage with the community they proposed to profoundly change, Amazon continued its effort to shakedown governments to get its way. It is time for a national dialogue about the perils of these types of corporate subsidies.”<strong> </strong></p>
<p id="WTLCdB">Amazon would have set up its HQ2 in Anable Basin, located on the Long Island City waterfront, on a site owned by Plaxall Realty. In a statement, Plaxall managing directors Paula Kirby, Tony Pfohl, and Matthew Quigley said they were “extremely disappointed” by the decision. </p>
<p id="lXbfoc">“Since our grandfather opened Plaxall’s doors on the waterfront seven decades ago, our family has believed in the overwhelming promise of Anable Basin and Long Island City as centers of productivity and innovation,” their statement continues. “We continue to believe that today.”</p>
<p id="rWXOCa">Opposition has been swift, and fierce, since Amazon <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/5/18064152/amazon-hq2-search-new-york-city-finalist">announced</a> in November that it would bring its HQ2—and, reportedly, 25,000 jobs and $27 billion in tax revenue—to Long Island City. Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio have both touted the deal as an economic development win for New York City. But much of the <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/11/14/18095799/amazon-hq2-long-island-city-rally-critics">criticism</a> has focused on the subsidies that Amazon will recieve: as much as $3 billion, through a <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2018/12/11/18136041/amazon-hq2-new-york-proposal-jeff-bezos">combination</a> of tax incentive programs from the city and state. Critics of the deal include City Council member Jimmy Van Bramer and Gianaris, who represent Long Island City, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.</p>
<p id="ODGjxy">“When our community fights together, anything is possible, even when we’re up against the biggest corporation in the world,” van Bramer said in a statement. “I am proud that we fought for our values, which is a fight for working families, immigrants, and organized labor. Defeating an anti-union corporation that mistreats workers and assists ICE in terrorizing immigrant communities is a victory. Defeating an unprecedented act of corporate welfare is a triumph that should change the way we do economic development deals in our city and state forever.”</p>
<p id="7acVQ8">Amazon’s anti-union stance had also become a sticking point in the debate over bringing HQ2 to NYC, since the company had explicitly said it would not support union drives at its New York headquarters. </p>
<p id="DnBHtv">“Rather than addressing the legitimate concerns that have been raised by many New Yorkers, Amazon says you do it our way or not at all, we will not even consider the concerns of New Yorkers—that’s not what a responsible business would do,” Chelsea Connors, the director of communications for the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU).</p>
<p id="S0b8EG">“I look forward to working with companies that understand that if you’re willing to engage with New Yorkers and work through challenging issues New York City is the world’s best place to do business,” City Council speaker Corey Johnson said in a statement. “I hope this is the start of a conversation about vulture capitalism and where our tax dollars are best spent. I know I’d choose mass transit over helipads any day.”</p>
<p id="Wk3okp">Others, however, see Amazon’s decision to withdraw from New York City as a negative. </p>
<p id="eRT7P2">“I’m worried about New York,” Vishaan Chakrabarti, the founder of the Practice for Architecture and Urbanism, tells Curbed. He wrote an <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/16/opinion/amazon-hq2-new-york.html">op-ed supporting HQ2</a> for the <em>New York Times </em>in November. “We’re sending all sorts of signals that says this isn’t the place to be an entrepreneur, and it goes against the grain of what the history of New York is.”</p>
<p id="C7oK5p">“We are stunned by today’s unfortunate news,” Gary LaBarbera, president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, said in a statement. “Politics and pandering have won out over a once-in-a-generation investment in New York City’s economy, bringing with it tens of thousands of solid middle class jobs. This sends the wrong message to businesses all over the world looking to call New York home. Who will want to come now?”</p>
<p id="DytLxl">“It’s unfortunate that we have lost out on an opportunity to create tens of thousands of jobs for city residents and generate billions of dollars in tax revenue to fund vital services including infrastructure improvements for transportation, schools, and open space,” John Bank Nevertheless, New York City is still open for business and will retain its status as a world class center for tech and innovation”</p>
<p id="YuZDuu">This story is developing, and will be updated as more information becomes available. </p>
<aside id="dywvwA"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"ny-curbed"}'></div></aside>
https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/14/18224997/amazon-hq2-new-york-city-canceledAmy Plitt