There’s no shortage of prime city real estate for Amazon’s next headquarters, according to New Yorkers.
The city said Wednesday its fielded more than two dozen suggestions for where it should propose Amazon open its second headquarters, dubbed HQ2.
The city said it will work with the state to review the sites that more than 40 organizations flagged across all five boroughs, and submit a proposal to Amazon by Oct. 19.
“From the moment Amazon released its request for proposals, New York’s real estate, business and community leaders have worked together to best position the city to win the company’s second headquarters,” said Alicia Glen, the city’s deputy mayor for Housing and Economic Development. “Thanks to this collaborative effort, we now see the tremendous potential we have for development sites.”
On Sept. 15, the city’s Economic Development Corporation urged New Yorkers to identify privately controlled sites that, when bundled with nearby public property, could provide a good corporate hub for Amazon.
The e-retailer said it needs about 500,000 square feet of space by 2019 — and up to 8 million square feet after 2027 — for its second headquarters in North America. Amazon wants to open HQ2 in an area with access to mass transit and within 2 miles of major highways.
The Economic Development Corp. noted in its request for site ideas that it would prioritize plans that could catalyze development in outer-borough commercial districts, minimize displacement of industrial companies and establish initiatives that connect communities to good jobs.
Some business experts said Amazon’s public bid for headquarter location proposals is a ploy to drum up competition and secure tax incentives for HQ2.
The city does not intend to propose discretionary tax incentives as part of its pitch to Amazon, according to a spokesman for the city’s Economic Development Corporation.
The state, however, has been offering Amazon incentives for its other New York City outposts.
