The Most Hyped Decision of 2018 That Will Result in A Lot of Disappointment

• December 21st 2017

by Nena Perry-Brown

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UrbanTurf usually stays away from publishing rankings or lists…except at the end of the year when we look back at what DC’s residential real estate scene had to offer during the previous 12 months. So, this week we are looking at not only the best but the most intriguing and peculiar things that came across our radar over the course of 2017. Enjoy.

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When Amazon announced its intention this year to build a second full-sized headquarters somewhere in the U.S., 238 jurisdictions threw their hats in the ring, with local officials thrilled at the prospect of hosting the corporation. The excitement was unsurprising; after all, Amazon is expected to build an 8 million square-foot campus that creates up to 50,000 jobs, a major potential economic stimulus in one fell swoop. However, considering that 237 places set themselves up for a big let-down, 2017 may go down in history as the year that saw cities doing the most for the least.

Many municipalities not only offered lucrative incentive packages, but also went to great lengths to catch Amazon’s eye, with elaborate marketing campaigns and gimmicks ranging from video packages to sending a cactus to promises to rename an entire town. DC was no exception, spending almost $140,000 on a proposal that included a cute video of Mayor Bowser getting Amazon’s Alexa voice service to cosign DC’s top contender status for the new campus; it is unclear the extent to which DC officials offered incentives.

After the solicitation period ended, a number of publications and studies agreed with Bowser (and Alexa?) that the District was likely on Amazon’s short list. The city’s proposal highlighted four sites or neighborhoods that could accommodate the new headquarters, although they may arguably be tight fits.

Ultimately, however, Amazon can only choose one city, and when the finalists are announced early next year, there will be much more disappointment to go around than anything else. And to let some Seattle-ites tell it, hosting Amazon in your city is not necessarily a benefit.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/the_most_hyped_decision_of_2018_that_will_result_in_a_lot_of_disappointment/13385.