A small but vocal group of critics including New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are being blamed for making Amazon.com Inc change its mind about setting up a second headquarters in Queens, New York.
Amazon on Thursday canceled plans to build a much-hyped HQ2 in Long Island City that would have created 25,000 high-paying jobs, blaming opposition to $3 billion in incentives promised by state and city politicians, Reuters reported.
Hundreds of municipalities competed for the coveted tax-dollars and high-wage jobs Amazon promised. After a year-long search, Amazon picked Northern Virginia and New York with plans to split the headquarters between two locales.
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Despite vocal opposition by some lawmakers, a majority of voters in New York City and state supported the deal to bring Amazon to Queens.
Among city residents polled by the Siena Research Institute, 58 percent supported the project and 35 percent were opposed, according to Market Watch.
Opponents objected to handing over billions of dollars in incentives to a company run by Jeff Bezos, the world’s richest man.
Long Island City sits across the East River from midtown Manhattan’s skyscrapers. Some long-time neighborhood residents worried about gentrification in the area, where high-rises have sprung up in recent years
Other opponents included the progressive group Democratic Socialists of America and Democratic politicians Ocasio-Cortez and state Sen. Mike Gianaris. Also opposed was the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union which is trying to unionize employees at an Amazon warehouse on Staten I
When she was campaigning, Ocasio-Cortez promised to bring an “urgency” to the fight for working families.
Other Amazon tech hubs such as Dallas and Austin could gain new jobs as a result of Thursday’s surprise announcement, Dallas News reported.
