NYC Mayor Takes Swipe at San Francisco in Touting City’s Advantages for Amazon HQ2
On the radio program, the mayor pointed to the city’s public housing and affordable housing programs and took a swipe at the City of San Francisco, who he said enacted zoning policies that has transformed it to a city for the wealthy.
NEW YORK CITY—New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio says that if indeed Amazon selects the city to be one of the locations it will house its second headquarters (HQ2), the influx of thousands of the company’s workers will “consolidate New York City’s role as an international technology hub.”
In an appearance on the Bill Lehrer radio show on WNYC on Friday, the mayor hedged his bet, noting that Amazon had yet to announce the location or locations of the HQ2 sweepstakes, although multiple press reports have indicated that the Seattle-based e-commerce giant will be picking two cities for HQ2. The suspected finalists include New York City, Crystal City, VA and Dallas. Some reports indicate that Amazon is eyeing the Long Island City section of Queens for a portion of HQ2.
The mayor did not pull any punches in noting that the city’s diversified population and talented educated workforce have been key factors in Amazon’s interest in the city for the requirement.
On the radio program, the mayor pointed to the city’s public housing and affordable housing programs and took a swipe at the City of San Francisco, who he said enacted zoning policies that has transformed it to a city for the wealthy.
“San Francisco made the decision a long time ago, not to expand public housing, not to build up and create affordable housing on a substantial scale,” de Blasio said. “By freezing in place what they had, and it’s beautiful, don’t get me wrong, it’s a beautiful city, but by freezing in place what they had, they created a path way to a city of an elite. There are still some working people and low-income people and even some middle-class people in San Francisco, but more and more it’s city for the wealthy.”
The mayor noted there are 400,000 residents of New York City public housing, more than two million in rent regulated housing and plans are in place to build or create affordable housing for another 700,000 people.
He called the difference between the housing policies in New York and San Francisco as “night and day.”
Stating that if Amazon does indeed select the city as one of the HQ2 sites the company will help strengthen an already strong New York City economy. However, in one last swipe at the “City by the Bay,” the mayor said, “the absolute difference between us and San Francisco is we believe in economic diversity, we believe in ensuring there is a vast supply of affordable housing and unfortunately decades ago San Francisco went on a different track.”
The mayor stressed that Amazon’s HQ2 will bring thousands of jobs (estimated at 25,000 if the company chooses two cities for the requirement) and solidify the city’s position as an international technology hub. He also noted that Amazon would also reinforce the need for the city to invest in infrastructure to accommodate future growth.
He believes that despite the city having a policy of not offering incentives, the state incentives and other factors put the city in a strong position in terms of Amazon HQ2.
“What I can safely say is, we have what I think is the number one thing they want, which is an extraordinary talent pool and a place where talented people want to be,” de Blasio told the radio audience. “We know they would contribute greatly to New York City’s economy, not just with all the jobs they would bring but with the bigger impact on our economy and our tech sector. So, I think it’s just a good fit and that’s what wins the day in the end.”