Hamilton joins scramble to court business behemoth Amazon.com
Can city offer tax breaks to compete with U.S. jurisdictions
Hamilton is joining the queue of cities scrambling to court internet retail giant Amazon.com as it seeks a host for a corporate headquarters.
The business behemoth has announced it will consider proposals from cities and upper-level governments in United States and Canada to host a $5-billion “HQ2” — a second headquarters in addition to its existing Seattle location — expected to eventually house 50,000 employees.
Major metropolitan cities in Canada including Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa have already expressed interest in landing the massive employer.
Hamilton is also forming a team led by the office of city manager Chris Murray in the hopes of submitting a proposal before the Oct. 19 deadline, Mayor Fred Eisenberger told councillors in an update Friday.
The mayor said he has contacted the province to indicate the city’s interest and added he is “already fielding offers of help from local external stakeholders,” including pri- vate businesses and public agencies.
“The benefits in terms of jobs and economic development are self-evident and unprecedented,” he said. “Although detailed analysis is required, a quick read indicates Hamilton meets many of the criteria Amazon has established.”
Those criteria include location in a large metropolitan area, proximity to mass transit and rail, highways and an international airport.
Coun. Sam Merulla argued the city’s cheaper land — including a large swath of property around the airport controversially dedicated for new industry and business ex- pansion — makes it a “far superior” candidate compared with busy Toronto.
“There is highway access, we have the largest (Ontario) port, we have an airport where they can control their own destiny,” said Merulla, who had also separately mused about bringing up an Amazon bid at council next week. “Why wouldn’t we try for it?” The city team is meeting Monday to further discuss a bid and dissect Amazon criteria.
Whether Hamilton or any other Canadian city would be able to offer tax breaks or other incentives needed to compete with U.S. jurisdic- tions is one of many outstanding questions.
Amazon has indicated it is seeking to locate in a metro area, with an international airport and large, well-educated workforce. Hamilton proper has fewer than 600,000 people, but it increasingly wellconnected via transit to the broader GTA.
Hamilton’s privately run international airport has struggled to become a passenger destination over the years, but has seen success as a cargo hub.