Amazon has narrowed its list to 20 cities after reviewing 238 proposals for its future second headquarters, dubbed HQ2. Jacksonville didn't make the cut.
Miami was the only city in Florida that did.
Tia Ford, a spokeswoman for Mayor Lenny Curry, said Thursday, “Jacksonville’s pursuit of the Amazon HQ2 location was aspirational and demonstrates exactly the type of economic, business development opportunities important to the city’s future.”
“While Jacksonville was not named as a finalist for this project, Mayor Curry and the administration work every day to identify opportunities that expand the local economy and create jobs while protecting taxpayer money,” Ford added.
Last month, Curry's office released the city’s video pitch to bring Amazon’s second headquarters to Jacksonville. Amazon's first headquarters is in Seattle.
According to the video presentation, riverfront “shovel ready land nestled between our established office district and our NFL stadium and amphitheater" would have been given to Amazon at no cost.
The video’s animations showed land that appeared to be the former Shipyards and Metropolitan Park, which are owned by the city.
Last year, the Downtown Investment Authority selected a company controlled by Jaguars owner Shad Khan to become the master developer of the same tract of land.
Although no updates have been provided recently by either the city or Khan’s representatives on the Shipyards proposal, it’s believed those discussions are ongoing.
As for Amazon, it already has a large presence in Jacksonville, employing thousands of workers at two fulfillment centers, a delivery station and a warehouse.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez tweeted shortly after learning his city is still in the running:
We are very excited that @CityofMiami made it to the list of cities being considered for @amazon’s HQ2! #Miami’s business-friendly environment and our highly-skilled, multilingual workers are ready for #AmazonHQ2. https://t.co/YCzhwN6AVb
— Mayor Francis Suarez (@FrancisSuarez) January 18, 2018
Here's the full list of cities that are still in the running:
- Atlanta, GA
- Austin, TX
- Boston, MA
- Chicago, IL
- Columbus, OH
- Dallas, TX
- Denver, CO
- Indianapolis, IN
- Los Angeles, CA
- Miami, FL
- Montgomery County, MD
- Nashville, TN
- Newark, NJ
- New York City, NY
- Northern Virginia, VA
- Philadelphia, PA
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Raleigh, NC
- Toronto, ON
- Washington D.C.
Bill Bortzfield can be reached at bbortzfield@wjct.org, 904-358-6349 or on Twitter at @BortzInJax.
