Amazon has been looking for a second headquarters for a few years now. If not Atlanta, Amazon was expected to choose a city on the east coast to establish a headquarters on both of the United States' coasts. But Amazon chose New York City (NYC) chose New York City (NYC), a reasonable choice for a second headquarters. And Amazon also chose a second more generic region, Arlington, Virginia.
Personally, I had hoped they would pick Atlanta, because having a major corporation with a focus on technology that close to me would be surreal. Picking Atlanta made even more sense when considering geography, because their current headquarters is in Seattle, which is the very northwest of the contiguous United States. Atlanta, being in the southeast, would create a balance.
So why did they choose NYC and north Virgina?
Because both NYC and Virginia have great young talent in the form of fresh college graduates. New York City has Columbia University and New York University, with other prestigious colleges and universities, such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard and Princeton in close proximity. Virginia has the University of Virginia and also Virginia Tech. So in terms of hiring, splitting their headquarters makes some sense.
This is also a great perk for high school students like me who are set to graduate this year or so. I am now more likely to consider and choose a college in New York or north Virgina so I can be closer to the job market boom that will follow Amazon's business.
Although both places have a 4-hour driving distance in between, in a geographical sense, Amazon's headquarters in Arlington is only a few minutes from the airport, and New York City's subway system allows for easy access to their airport as well. The flight time is just over an hour.
It is also important to note that by splitting their headquarters between Virginia and New York, they are doubling their opportunities for tax incentive. Both New York City and Virginia have offered billions of dollars in tax breaks to Amazon in an effort to attract their business and boost their own domestic economies.
With that in mind, I am looking forward to what Amazon has to offer in the near future and considering colleges in NYC and Virgina once I graduate!
