HOUSINGNEWS REPORT
AMAZON AND THE BATTLE FOR TOMORROW’S COMMUNITIES
“There are two Americas. One with an abundance of capital and opportunity -- in Silicon Valley and pockets around the nation. But not in the other America, and that other America is most of the country.”
STEVE CASE FOUNDER OF AOL
subsidies according to Good Jobs First, “a non-profit, non-partisan resource center promoting accountability in economic development.” The reality is that subsidies are hard to measure. If Smithville gives a $5 million tax abatement to a company was the cost really $5 million? Had the company not moved into town there would have been no tax revenues to abate. If a city gives the Jones company $10 million to build a factory, the money is being spent locally; it’s employing local people which means more money is being spent in town, property taxes are going up, and unemployment costs are going down. Changing Times Maybe there’s no need to pay subsidies at all. We now have virtually full
pockets around the nation. But not in the other America, and that other America is most of the country.” To create more balance in smaller markets, Case has now raised more than $1 billion to finance Midwest start-ups. If you’re in a community where the job base is contracting — where abandoned factories and closed shopping malls dot the landscape, where home prices are falling and people are leaving — then courting Amazon is a compelling idea. If you’re a politician the good news is that the public overwhelmingly supports an Amazon investment in your community. Morning Consult — a polling organization — found in a recent survey “that 72 percent of a national
sample of 2,201 adults support the retail and technology giant setting up its headquarters in their hometown or nearest large city, with half saying they strongly support it. Notably, majorities of every subgroup surveyed are in favor of Amazon’s presence in their area — including 72 percent each of suburbanites and urbanites and 70 percent of rural dwellers. “The tech giant,” it continued, “also enjoys a 76 percent net favorability per Morning Consult Brand Intelligence, one of the highest rankings for any brand polled.” What About Cost? Amazon – like most corporations — seeks the lowest possible expenses when it elects to locate a facility. To date Amazon has extracted some $600 million in economic development
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DECEMBER 2017 | ATTOM DATA SOLUTIONS
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