Amazon;s second headquarters in Puerto Rico

Mrkpytn wrote:

I will be seeing my friend in a couple of days and she speaks to her brother daily so I will get some more information. She did mention Roosevelt Station and the fact that they would have their own airport there.

Yes Ceiba Roosevelt Roads has its own airport and sea Port with plenty of land for 5-10 Amazon HQ’s. I still do not think we should count the chicks yet.

CatsMeow83 wrote:

Most newly minted Harvard MBA's are not going be attracted to an area where 50% of the people are drinking from a creek.

Although I agree with much of what you write, there's no reason to make a statement like this.
Amazon is looking mainly for software development talent, not Harvard MBAs.

Amazon wrote:

HQ2 will be the second Amazon headquarters in North America. We are looking for a location with strong local and regional talent—particularly in software development and related fields—as well as a stable and business-friendly environment to continue hiring and innovating on behalf of our customers.

And 50% of the people drinking from a creek... Have you ever been to Puerto Rico?

Sitka wrote:

IMO. lets not waste a lot of energy on this pie-in-the-sky stuff.  When I get back to the island, it's gona be a lot of hard work and fast cash to get my place repaired and improved.

We're not getting  any younger, I gotta get to work and build it right.   

That’s the spirit Sitka.

Gary wrote:

Amazon is looking mainly for software development talent, not Harvard MBAs.

Amazon is the #1 destination for Harvard MBA grads - you would be surprised at the volume of MBA grads that are now scooped up by AMZN and the other top tech companies.  Regardless, I doubt that a software engineer is going to be any less picky or selective about living conditions than an MBA grad (in fact, engineers will probably be worse).

Gary wrote:

And 50% of the people drinking from a creek... Have you ever been to Puerto Rico?

Indeed I have.  And my point is simply that people making $100K a year are going to want to live in a place with reliable electricity and clean drinking water.  I mean, can you really dispute this?  Right now, the majority of the island, as I understand, lacks access to these 2 things.  I appreciate that it's only temporary, but certainly the electricity issue is not a novel one, and will continue to be a problem for the foreseeable future, even once electricity is restored.  Again, not trying to be a downer - I'm simply stating the fact that one of the world's largest tech companies will need reliable electricity to operate its multinational business, and I think prospective employees will be a little reluctant to relocate to a year-round tropical climate where they may or may not have electricity.

annabfalter wrote:

What's not to like, unless you really have a thing for winter?

I would totally be with you, if Puerto Rico had reliable infrastructure in place.  I was visiting AMZN's HQ in Seattle for a meeting a couple years ago, and all of the employees were in a state of near revolt at the time, because apparently the cafeteria had run out of organic bananas, and they wouldn't have any available for another few days.  Trust me, these are not the people that are going to take intermittent power outages and other inconveniences in stride.  I could be wrong, for sure, but I think it's telling that Puerto Rico is having to offer the most crazy tax incentives available anywhere in the world in order to attract professionals and other highly-skilled workers to the island (and that was before the storm came).

Sitka wrote:

IMO. lets not waste a lot of energy on this pie-in-the-sky stuff.  When I get back to the island, it's gona be a lot of hard work and fast cash to get my place repaired and improved.

We're not getting  any younger, I gotta get to work and build it right.   

Couldn't agree more.  And that was really the point of my earlier post, even though it didn't come off that way.  The island has plenty to say grace over right now, without spending time and resources on this pipe dream.  Save the dry powder for next time around, and hopefully PR will be better positioned to make a competitive bid next time AMZN or another big company comes knocking.

moralesc317 wrote:

Just to provide further clarification, Amazon is seeking a second headquarters and does not plan on putting a fulfillment center in Puerto Rico. The new headquarters wherever it is located will be managing strategic operations for Amazon and will serve as a continuity of operations headquarters for the 1st headquarters. Items will not be shipped out of this headquarters.

That is good to hear, then PR has a chance.