City of Philadelphia - File #: 170728

• File #: 170728
• Version: 0
• Type: Resolution
• Status: ADOPTED
• File created: 9/14/2017
• In control: CITY COUNCIL
• Final action: 9/14/2017
• Title: Encouraging Amazon to choose the City of Philadelphia as the future home of HQ2.
• Sponsors: Councilmember Reynolds Brown, Councilmember Green, Councilmember Squilla, Councilmember Henon, Councilmember Domb, Councilmember Parker, Councilmember Taubenberger, Councilmember Gym, Councilmember Bass, Council President Clarke, Councilmember Blackwell, Councilmember Oh, Councilmember Jones, Councilmember Quiñones Sánchez, Councilmember Johnson, Councilmember O'Neill, Councilmember Greenlee

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result	Tally
9/14/2017	0	CITY COUNCIL	Introduced and Ordered Placed on This Week's Final Passage Calendar	Pass
9/14/2017	0	CITY COUNCIL	ADOPTED

Title
Encouraging Amazon to choose the City of Philadelphia as the future home of HQ2.

Body
WHEREAS On Thursday, September 7, 2017, Amazon announced that it is seeking to open a second company headquarters in North America ("Amazon HQ2"), and will conduct a comprehensive search to decide on the location; and

WHEREAS, The HQ2 campus will require up to 8 million square feet of new space, may entail more than $5 billion to build, and employ up to 50,000 new full-time employees in the years following commencement of operations; and

WHEREAS, Amazon issued a Request for Proposals for HQ2 highlighting specific requirements for an ideal site, including a metropolitan area of at least 1 million people; greenfield or infill space available to meet Amazon's space needs in multiple phases; access to mass transit on site; close proximity to a major international airport; and a location able to attract and retain strong technical talent; and

WHEREAS, Philadelphia's commercial and non-commercial real estate is more affordable than other cities in the U.S. comparable in size and density, and its cost of living is 20 percent less than other major metropolitan areas; and

WHEREAS, Philadelphia has the fastest millennial growth rate of any of the nation's 10 largest cities with nearly 40 percent of 25-34 year olds holding a bachelor's degrees or higher, compared with the national average of 33 percent; and

WHEREAS, With 102 colleges and universities, the Greater Philadelphia region offers a diverse pool of highly-skilled, experienced experts, and young professionals, with 90,000 graduates each year; and

WHEREAS, Philadelphia is an international gateway, perfectly situated for business operations along the northeast corridor between Washington D.C. and New York, and with 40 percent of the United States population within 2 hours; and

WHEREAS, Philadelphia has a booming, diverse, and highly engaged startup ecosystem with over 65 incubators and coworking...