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Arizona out-of-running for Amazon's second headquarters

Posted at 7:54 PM, Jan 18, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-18 21:55:39-05

No Arizona city made the top 20 list for Amazon's second headquarters, but now the question many have is 'why'? 

Jim Rounds with Rounds Consulting Group thinks that other cities offered better incentives, which could have hurt Arizona in the long-run.

"I do think we would have overpaid and I do feel like it could have derailed some of the other stuff that we're doing," said Rounds.

Rounds also thinks that Amazon already has a decision made.

"I think they roughly knew where they were going and this was all to bid up the price," said Rounds.

Rounds does not believe any politics were a factor in Amazon's decision.

Even though Amazon won't go into detail why no Arizona cities made the list, David Adame with Chicanos Por La Causa says he thinks immigration and education were factors.

"We need to work together and make sure that we are putting the best reputation of this state out there and that we're investing in the right things like education," Adame said.

Governor Doug Ducey's Office released the following statement:

As always, Arizona puts it's best foot forward. We thank the many partners around the state who came together under the Arizona Commerce Authority's leadership to help us make our best effort. We also thank Amazon for the investments they have already made in Arizona and look forward to supporting their continued growth in our state. While this one didn't happen, we are still having a lot of success bringing jobs to the state, most recently with SkyBridge. Over the last three years, more than 160,000 private sector jobs have been added, and over the coming months, you'll be hearing much more about new jobs Arizona is attracting.

 

A spokesman for Phoenix Community & Economic Development released the following statement to ABC15:

"The City of Phoenix is not discouraged about the short list announced for Amazon’s second headquarters. The city’s economy continues to grow with expansive new job hiring by our existing companies, and new additions to our business community arriving on a regular basis. Phoenix is well-recognized as one of the top three markets for financial and professional service workers, the third best U.S. market for tech job hiring, America’s fastest-growing city and the metro with the highest individual wage growth in the U.S. The market continues to thrive and grow and is recognized as a great location by national site selection consultants and major firms."