NYC, Newark Among Finalists For Amazon's Second Headquarters
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- New York City and Newark are among 20 cities advancing to the next round in the competition for Amazon's second headquarters.
The retail giant announced the news on its website Thursday.
Other cities being considered are Boston, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Montgomery County, Washington D.C., Raleigh, Northern Virginia, Atlanta, Miami, Austin, Dallas, Los Angeles, Nashville, Denver, Chicago, Indianapolis, Columbus and Toronto.
"In the coming months, Amazon will work with each of the candidate locations to dive deeper into their proposals, request additional information as necessary, and evaluate the feasibility of a future partnership that can accommodate our hiring plans as well as benefit our employees and the local community," the company said.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka talked up his city Thursday.
"Newark is not the armpit of the East Coast," Baraka said.
It's an unlikely rallying cry, but as WCBS 880's Peter Haskell reported, Baraka wanted to put some misconceptions at rest.
"Newark is an incredible and beautiful place," he said. "It is not a bus stop. It is a destination."
Amazon expects to bring 50,000 jobs and $5 billion in investments.
City Economic Development Commission president and ZCEO Aisha Glover said Newark's pitch is not a fluke.
"We have the tech talent, infrastructure, diversity, location – we're on the map," she said.
The city and state have offered $7 billion in incentive.
A decision on the placement of the headquarters is expected to be made this year.
More than 50 cities across the U.S. and Canada entered the bidding war for Amazon's new $5 billion headquarters.
Amazon, which is based in Seattle and has its headquarters there, has said its new headquarters would bring 50,000 jobs along with it.