AMAZON SCRAPS PLANS TO OPEN NYC HEADQUARTERS

Amazon has scrapped its plans to build a headquarters in New York after opposition from local politicians and some of its would-be neighbors, the third most-valuable public U.S. company said on Thursday.

Amazon’s search for a second headquarters, which it described as HQ2, was deemed a massive, year-long public relations success, garnering worldwide publicity and interest from cities across the United States and Canada.

Some residents of the Long Island City, Queens neighborhood where the headquarters was to be built mounted protests since the announcement of the new offices late last year. Long-time residents of the once a scruffy haunt of artists feared being forced out by rising rents and untenable pressure on already overburdened subway and sewage systems.

Politicians from the Democratic Party’s leftward flank, including the freshman U.S. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, decried the state’s promise to give the company, controlled by the world’s richest man, billions of dollars in tax breaks.

The proposal ran into opposition from local politicians who opposed the $2.8 billion in incentives promised to Amazon in a deal secretly negotiated by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Amazon had planned to have 700 employees in New York as part of the HQ2 project by the end of the year and did not plan to hit 25,000 in Queens for 10 years.

In a statement, de Blasio blamed Amazon for failing to address local criticism. “We gave Amazon the opportunity to be a good neighbor and do business in the greatest city in the world,” he said. “Instead of working with the community, Amazon threw away that opportunity.”

The company said, “for Amazon, the commitment to build a new headquarters requires positive, collaborative relationships with state and local elected officials who will be supportive over the long-term.”

Amazon said Thursday it did not plan to re-open the yearlong search that drew 238 proposals from cities across North America.

“We do not intend to reopen the HQ2 search at this time,” the company said. “We will proceed as planned in Northern Virginia and Nashville, and we will continue to hire and grow across our 17 corporate offices and tech hubs in the U.S. and Canada. Thank you again to Governor Cuomo, Mayor de Blasio, and the many other community leaders and residents who welcomed our plans and supported us along the way. We hope to have future chances to collaborate as we continue to build our presence in New York over time.”