City joins state’s Amazon pitch for online giant’s second headquarters

By Nick Kotsopoulos
Telegram & Gazette Staff

Posted Sep 19, 2017 at 10:42 PM  

Updated Sep 20, 2017 at 10:02 AM

WORCESTER - The city is working with commonwealth officials on being part of a state application responding to Amazon’s solicitation of proposals for construction of its second headquarters, City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. told the City Council Tuesday night.

He said a determination was made that having an overall application submitted by the state would be the best way to go, as opposed to having the city submit its own application, because it would strengthen its position in meeting requirements set by Amazon for the project.

The manager said the state application will likely involve multiple communities - including Boston - with the hope that Worcester can be a part of the project.

Mr. Augustus said he met with state officials in Boston Friday to discuss the overall strategy, while Mayor Joseph M. Petty has also had conversations with Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito.

“We’ve been all over this since the day it came out,” Mr. Augustus said in an interview. “We’re trying to be smart about this. It makes no sense for Worcester to submit its own application and compete against Boston because we do not meet the minimum requirements. For one thing, we do not have an international airport.

“So, we reached out to state officials to see how this city could be part of this,” he added. “The thinking is that if we are part of a bigger play that includes Boston, we would stand a shot of getting a piece of this. We feel there is a potential for some real opportunities here.”

Amazon has announced that it expects to invest more than $5 billion on construction of its second headquarters, dubbed HQ2.

The project is expected to bring with it 50,000 new jobs over an unspecified period of time. The online giant has asked cities to submit proposals for a new Amazon campus by Oct. 19.


In choosing the location for its HQ2, Amazon has expressed a preference for metropolitan areas with more than 1 million people; a stable and business-friendly environment; urban or suburban locations with the potential to attract and retain strong technical talent; and communities that “think big and creatively” when considering locations and real estate options.

Amazon said HQ2 could be, but does not have to be, an urban or downtown campus and have a similar layout to its Seattle headquarters campus, or a development-prepped site.

The company has added, however, that priority consideration will be given to a greenfield site of about 100 acres that would be pad ready, with utility infrastructure in place.

The sites do not have to be contiguous, but should be in proximity to each other.

Councilor-at-Large Konstantina B. Lukes, who recently suggested that the city submit its own response to Amazon’s RFP, said the project could make Worcester an international city.

She said Worcester needs to “stand up for itself” because she feels it will be left out or overshadowed by communities within the Route 128 belt if it is part of a state application.

But Mr. Petty reiterated that Worcester could not meet the requirements set by Amazon by itself. He said it makes much more sense to have Worcester be part of a state application.

“There are some real hurdles, but it is a way to put ourselves on the map,” the mayor said.

Mr. Augustus said one of the key selling points to the state’s application would be how Worcester and Boston could serve as bookends for the kind of talent pipeline that Amazon is looking for.

With all the colleges in Worcester and Boston, and between those two cities, he said they would be able to provide talent the company needs and wants.