Windsor to join Detroit in pitch for Amazon HQ
In what would be a “game-changer” on many fronts, Windsor plans to piggyback on Detroit’s bid for e-commerce giant Amazon’s multibillion-dollar city investment.
Less than two weeks after Amazon’s announcement, dozens of cities are already vying for the opportunity to host a second North American headquarters for the world’s largest internet-based retailer.
Company founder and CEO Jeff Bezos said it could mean a US$5 billion upfront capital investment eventually housing 50,000 staff members.
Mayor Drew Dilkens said he’s meeting this week with billionaire investor Dan Gilbert — tasked by Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan to lead that city’s bid — to discuss a potential binational submission including Windsor.
“It’s very exciting,” Dilkens told the Star.
He said it would mean Windsor becomes “significantly invested in the tech sector.”
Hearing last week that Detroit was putting in a bid, Dilkens said he emailed Gilbert, whose investments have been a significant factor in downtown Detroit’s economic rebirth.
“He told me, ‘It’s funny you contacted me, I was just thinking about contacting you,’ ” Dilkens said of Gilbert’s response.
In the fevered speculation since Amazon’s announcement, Detroit hasn’t ranked among the potential top city picks. With a Canadian connection, however, that could change.
Toronto and Ottawa have already announced they’re putting in proposals, but Dilkens said a Detroit-Windsor bid would mean easy access to tech talent on both sides of the border.
“It would be hard to ignore our bid ... it could be something no one else can offer,” he said, calling it a “game-changer.”
Without touching parkland, Dilkens suggested Windsor could offer a waterfront site to complement a similarly located potential Amazon campus on the American side of the Detroit River.
Amazon has stated it’s interested in locating in a “sizable city” with good transportation, strong schools and a talented workforce. Given the recent visa issues and immigration uncertainty in the United States, industry observers have said a Canadian city is appealing due to better access to global tech talent.
Amazon, one of the largest employers in the United States, has said “incentives” offered at the state/provincial and municipal levels “will be significant factors in the decision-making process.”
Dilkens said he’s been in contact with former TD Bank CEO Ed Clark, appointed by the Wynne government to assist with Ontario bids for the Amazon headquarters.
“He said we all have the same access to the suite of incentives and information,” said Dilkens.
The cost to Windsor of the bid would be negligible, and municipal incentives would be covered under current programs, like the CIP, he added. “Clearly, the biggest part of this bid would be the building part in Detroit. What’s different in this bid is the connection with the best talent in Canada here in Windsor,” said Dilkens.
Amazon.com has been expanding rapidly into a number of tech and other sectors. This year, the company will invest US$4.5 billion in video content. It’s also expanding its brick-and-mortar presence, announcing in June that it was acquiring Whole Foods, a high-end supermarket chain with over 400 stores, in a deal worth US$13.4 billion. The bidding deadline is Oct. 19. Gilbert is expected to divulge more details about the Detroit bid on Thursday.