As you may have heard, Amazon has officially decided to split its HQ2 between two locations: Crystal City, Va. and Queens, New York. The news broke this morning.
This means that the two spots will receive $5 billion via construction investments, with an estimated 25,000 jobs each, Amazon said in a statement. For everyone else, the announcement marks the conclusion of more than a year of speculation as to where the new HQ would land and more than 200 applications from cities eager to earn the distinction.
Although Inc. Magazine first named Cincy No. 3 on a list of potential HQ2 locales, the Queen City's Amazon journey ended earlier this year. REDI Cincinnati CEO Johnna Reeder, who was a part of many conversations with Amazon during the city's courtship of the company, said that while Amazon appreciated Cincy's "sense of place" and its collaboration with many regions and states, the city ultimately didn't have the proper amount of tech employees and graduates necessary to land HQ2.
For some, the news wasn't met with that much disappointment. "Thanks for Not Picking Us, Amazon!," wrote CEO and founder of Cerkl, Tarek Kamil, in an post for LinkedIn. Kamil argued this spurn will end up being a boon for the city and the region, as “there’s simply no sense of urgency to foster technology into our educational system."
“Why can’t coding be considered a foreign language?” Kamil continues. “It’s more ubiquitous than any language spoken — including English. … Why are students in Ohio required to graduate with a personal finance credit but there are NO requirements for technology to graduate high school?”
While Cincy has had time to become accustomed to Amazon's dismissal, others are just beginning to process the news today. Below, we've rounded up a number of takes on Twitter and beyond.
Curious how other cities around the Inno network are feeling about the news? We've got you covered.
Boston: Amazon Ends Its Year-Long Search for HQ2 by Picking NYC and Arlington, Virginia Chicago: Chicago Loses Out on Amazon HQ2. And That's OK. D.C.: Amazon Picks Northern Virginia’s Crystal City and New York City For Split HQ2
Other Interesting Reads:
- On Cincy and Amazon: Documents Detail Cincinnati's Failed Courtship of Amazon HQ2 (WCPO Cincinnati)
- Amazon's HQ2 Spectacle Should Be Illegal (The Atlantic)
- Amazon’s HQ2 Will Benefit From New York City. But What Does New York Get? (The New York Times)
- Would Amazon’s HQ2 Really Be Good for Washington? (The Washingtonian)
- Amazon HQ2 Splits in Two — For Good Reason (The Hill)
Twitter Takes (Both funny and serious alike):
