Amazon Looking for a new HQ - Detroit-Windsor Bid Rejected

[emu steve]

I read something earlier today in the NYT that said Detroit actually comes out ahead of some other competitors regarding educational attainment. Detroit is apparently slightly more educated than Dallas, Atlanta, and Charlotte.

I assume that college educated personnel shouldn't be a problem for Detroit.

Plenty of college graduates each year from universities in Detroit, Washtenaw and Oakland counties, E. Lansing, etc. [[plus a lot of CMU, WMU, GVSU, etc. grads come from Metro Detroit).

They need greater employment opportunities in metro Detroit.

[stasu1213]

Detroit can be a good city to hold Amazon's second headquarter. Detroit is the only centrally located city which also has another country only 3 miles away across the pond. Detroit had a lot of land to build an Amazon headquarter cheaper than leading or building one in the other mentioned cities. Detroit as well as Southeastern Michigan need to improve the regional transit to make the city more appealing to Amazon. I could see it being built in Midtown not too far from Amtrak. Bring out those smaller shuttle cars that were going to be used in the railroad tracks before Granholm them Snyder mothballed the idea and the railcars. Detroit had one thing and that's open land near downtown

[southen]

Piggybacking on what you are saying Steve, who is to say that the future of mass transit isn't autonomous vehicles? Gilbert is doing a test run of the tech this October downtown. In addition to that he may be selling not the Detroit of today, but the progress and potential of the Detroit of tomorrow. I'd be showing where the city was five years ago downtown and following that by showing Bezos what it will look like in a few years. That trajectory is impressive and may be enough to show them that they are getting in on the ground floor of something special.

If you couldn't tell im feeling optimistic today.

[emu steve]

Agree, Detroit AND Southeast MI have some unique pluses, including autonomous vehicles, Gilbert, UofM, etc.

Gilbert just might carry a lot of water for the city.

If Bezos wants a ready-made city with virtually everything anyone could want, NoVa is it.

If Bezos wants a city where he could make a huge impact by leveraging what is waiting to be tapped [[in S.E. Michigan), then Detroit would be an excellent choice.

Announce that Amazon is coming and plan an expansion of the QLine and start building multi-family housing along Michigan Ave.

Detroit would have a real growth in millenials as a lot of UofM, MSU, etc. grads head to Detroit.

[stasu1213]

There's one issue with Amazon picking Detroit and the city and region lacks regional transit. Amazon's RFP wants direct access to rail, train, subway/metro and bus routes at the site. Detroit has just the QLine and People Mover and bus routes. No subway, no mass transit.

https://www.facebook.com/DetroitTransit/posts/1466058093484178

If Detroit were to not be picked, this would be the reason why. I truly hope Amazon looks past that and picks Detroit though.

Build the headquarters in Midtown near the Amtrak

[wolverine]

Piggybacking on what you are saying Steve, who is to say that the future of mass transit isn't autonomous vehicles? Gilbert is doing a test run of the tech this October downtown. In addition to that he may be selling not the Detroit of today, but the progress and potential of the Detroit of tomorrow. I'd be showing where the city was five years ago downtown and following that by showing Bezos what it will look like in a few years. That trajectory is impressive and may be enough to show them that they are getting in on the ground floor of something special.

If you couldn't tell im feeling optimistic today.

Problem is I think people are thinking too far into the future. Preparations for Amazon's arrival need to be done by next year with accelerated growth afterword. Support systems need to be in place now, not later. Millions of square feet of modem office space need to be ready months from now. It can't just be designed and built from scratch. It's taking McDoanlds over three years from design to opening date on an accelerated schedule for an HQ in downtown Chicago. Design, permits, construction all take time. Does Detroit have 500,000 sqft + of ready and expandable space for modern offices? Where will people park? Is there flexible growth areas nearby?

[emu steve]

Problem is I think people are thinking too far into the future. Preparations for Amazon's arrival need to be done by next year with accelerated growth afterword. Support systems need to be in place now, not later. Millions of square feet of modem office space need to be ready months from now. It can't just be designed and built from scratch. It's taking McDoanlds over three years from design to opening date on an accelerated schedule for an HQ in downtown Chicago. Design, permits, construction all take time. Does Detroit have 500,000 sqft + of ready and expandable space for modern offices? Where will people park? Is there flexible growth areas nearby?

Sorry for the pivot to No Virginia, but here is an excellent article which provides context of what Detroit will be up against in at least one area [[I know nothing of Denver, Chicago, etc.).

Here is what is happening along the subway extension deep into Fairfax County to Dulles Airport and Loudon County.

The first extension opened in 2014. The second part, including Dulles Airport, will be complete in 2020.

"Three years after its splashy opening, the first phase of Metro’s Silver Line has met with mixed success, fueling an unprecedented building boom in areas adjacent to its five new stations but struggling to attract riders.Since 2014, 11 new high-rises have been built in Tysons Corner, and more than 2 million more square feet of development is in the pipeline. Big-name companies, including Intelsat, have relocated to Tysons, attracted by the promise of a walkable urban neighborhood with easy access to public transportation."

TWO MILLION Square feet of construction in the pipeline. This area has been on a building spree once the first part of the two-part subway extension came on line [[2014).

Quite frankly, Bezos could get in his limo and take a look at what is going up now.

[BTW, for context, the subway problems were decades of deferred maintenance and they had to single track, shutdown both tracks, etc. over a long period of time [[think 18 months) to do a tremendous amount of maintenance/replacement work which made the subway system a TOTAL MESS. Folks abandoned the subway system for their cars. Ridership was down substantially. It is finally over.]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local...=.da9995288c73

[southen]

Problem is I think people are thinking too far into the future. Preparations for Amazon's arrival need to be done by next year with accelerated growth afterword. Support systems need to be in place now, not later. Millions of square feet of modem office space need to be ready months from now. It can't just be designed and built from scratch. It's taking McDoanlds over three years from design to opening date on an accelerated schedule for an HQ in downtown Chicago. Design, permits, construction all take time. Does Detroit have 500,000 sqft + of ready and expandable space for modern offices? Where will people park? Is there flexible growth areas nearby?

Are they simply looking for space available now or a place where they can expand? It sounds like they have a two decade plan which makes me think that they would like to move soon but not necessarily in months. I imagine a two year timeline for Monroe would work for them and allow them to accumulate talent to hit the ground running as well as planning future expansion.

[SammyS]

Why not Hudson or Monroe block? Can tailor it to Amazons exact specifications.

[313WX]

Why not Hudson or Monroe block? Can tailor it to Amazons exact specifications.

I thought the Hudson Block was supposed to be residential? Also, I thought the Monroe Block would be reserved for Gilbert's companies that are running out of space downtown?

In any event, I'd rather whatever Amazon develops be in addition to the plans Gilbert has for the Monroe / Hudson blocks. That way we can focus on actively filling the other surface lots around downtown with new and *tall* developments.

[EGrant]

Hudson Block will only have a few floors of actual office space. But it could be an interesting main building for them.

[wolverine]

Are they simply looking for space available now or a place where they can expand? It sounds like they have a two decade plan which makes me think that they would like to move soon but not necessarily in months. I imagine a two year timeline for Monroe would work for them and allow them to accumulate talent to hit the ground running as well as planning future expansion.

According to the RFP it says there's an initial requirement of 500,000 sqft for phase 1 in 2019. Preference will be shown to cities that meet this requirement OR greenfield site that has adequate enough infrastructure to meet development demands. So yeah, better get going on those Hudsons and Monroe block projects. I'm just worried about the painfully slow development timelines of so many past and current office projects.

[southen]

According to the RFP it says there's an initial requirement of 500,000 sqft for phase 1 in 2019. Preference will be shown to cities that meet this requirement OR greenfield site that has adequate enough infrastructure to meet development demands. So yeah, better get going on those Hudsons and Monroe block projects. I'm just worried about the painfully slow development timelines of so many past and current office projects.

If Amazon agrees to come here I imagine you would see some sped up timelines, especially if Gilbert is involved. Hell DG would move his employees out of the city temporarily if it meant freeing up enough space for Amazon to start in 2019 until other options are available.

[Gistok]

Did someone say they could use an extra empty block?

[southen]

Did someone say they could use an extra empty block?

Yes! Perhaps we could even pry that premier parking lot on the Tuller site from its current owner. Fronting a park like Grand Circus would be a nice little bonus for any potential bid.

[SammyS]

All this talk is so exciting and so fitting for a city with such heritage and on its monumental rebound. What a way to usher in the rebirth with an entirely new industry, look and feel. I'm very proud about what's already happened recently and excited about what potential Detroit has in future. Looking forward to finally moving down once my place is built.

[ABetterDetroit]

An exploratory and PUBLIC RELATIONS strategy meeting over Detroit's bid should be called immediately by the principals, Mayor, Gilbert, Council members, for anyone who could have a microphone shoved in their face to weigh in.

Obviously this will be a highly competitive situation between possible locations and It's critical nobody go on the record saying something off the cuff that could be interpreted as wrong, stupid, selfish etc... [[ there is a long list of what you don't want to say publicly) that could be used against Detroit by the competition.

Immediately should be this weekend.

Showing intelligence and sounding the same will make a difference in this race of many cities throughout the process.

[wolverine]

If Amazon agrees to come here I imagine you would see some sped up timelines, especially if Gilbert is involved. Hell DG would move his employees out of the city temporarily if it meant freeing up enough space for Amazon to start in 2019 until other options are available.

I hope this doesn't sound stupid, but I've always wished a company such as or similar to amazon would just renovate, fill and expand the whole Packard Plant site. Not only would a historic structure see a new life, but a new neighborhood that is almost entirely gutted could be rebuilt which would further rationalize rapid transit planning from downtown to neighborhoods.

[canuck]

I hope this doesn't sound stupid, but I've always wished a company such as or similar to amazon would just renovate, fill and expand the whole Packard Plant site. Not only would a historic structure see a new life, but a new neighborhood that is almost entirely gutted could be rebuilt which would further rationalize rapid transit planning from downtown to neighborhoods.

I also would like to see something dramatic happen around Cadillac Place and the Fischer building. I can imagine a very strong integration of older buildings within a modern day framework. Detroit definitely has a lot of opportunity to build one or a couple of campuses incrementally, and match the beautiful clusters of older skyscrapers with new stunners. A nice necklace of buildings amid vast greenspaces from downtown to midtown and New Center.

I'm rooting for Detroit, even if Montreal is competing for the high stakes prize.

[emu steve]

I hope this doesn't sound stupid, but I've always wished a company such as or similar to amazon would just renovate, fill and expand the whole Packard Plant site. Not only would a historic structure see a new life, but a new neighborhood that is almost entirely gutted could be rebuilt which would further rationalize rapid transit planning from downtown to neighborhoods.

I'll guess a brand new skyscraper. That said, what has Amazon in SEATTLE done? Could learn some lessons as to their preferences.

[313WX]

I'll guess a brand new skyscraper. That said, what has Amazon in SEATTLE done? Could learn some lessons as to their preferences.

Several new skyscrapers throughout the city.

[ABetterDetroit]

An exploratory and PUBLIC RELATIONS strategy meeting over Detroit's bid should be called immediately by the principals, Mayor, Gilbert, Council members, for anyone who could have a microphone shoved in their face to weigh in.

Obviously this will be a highly competitive situation between possible locations and It's critical nobody go on the record saying something off the cuff that could be interpreted as wrong, stupid, selfish etc... [[ there is a long list of what you don't want to say publicly) that could be used against Detroit by the competition.

Immediately should be like on Saturday this weekend.

Showing intelligence and sounding the same will make a difference in this race of many cities throughout the process.

[douglasm]

It might help a bit to understand a little about Jeff Bezos. The guy is willing to take a chance, and has invested in things that are not sure things like Blue Origin, his manned spacecraft indevor, and The Washington Post. He was an early investor in Google, and nobody out here [[I live in Washington and what Amazon does, like Boeing, is BIG news) has figured out the Whole Foods thing. Bezos is a bit unpredictable [[but a good businessman) and the idea of Detroit as a hub is not as far fetched as it may seem.

[Richard]

Groceries and drones,call in on your way home and dinner is waiting,no need for a wife.

How big is the jail site?

[SammyS]

It's considered sexist to expect your wife to cook 🙄

How about the old Douglass Brewster?