New York Is Giving Amazon a Helipad and New Yorkers Are Furious

November 15, 2018. This article discusses the incentive package that the Governor is offering Amazon choosing to move “HQ2” to Long Island City. According to the article, the package includes a helipad and $1.5 billion in incentives, which New Yorkers and political leaders are angry about.

New Yorkers are infuriated the only infrastructure improvement they will see from the city’s deal with Amazon is apparently a helipad for Jeff Bezos and his lieutenants at HQ2 (and-a-half). It’s not the biggest item in the memorandum of understanding outlining the $1.5 billion incentive package, but it is laid out in detail in its own clause (see item B under section 5, Public Party Commitments).

Aside from Cuomo and New York Mayor Bill De Blasio, the announcement that New York “won” the competition for Amazon’s new HQ has not been well received, including by elected representatives of the Queens neighborhood where it is slated to be built. State Sen. Mike Gianaris on Twitter condemned the Amazon incentives and announced coordinated opposition.

“The wheelbarrow full of tax subsidies looks even worse than we thought,” David Kallick, deputy director at the Fiscal Policy Institute, said to the Gothamist, noting that Bezos cited good public amenities and public transit, a vibrant and diverse neighborhood and an educated workforce in Queens when announcing the selection. “So, why should the state be putting up $1.5 billion and counting to ‘lure’ Amazon to Long Island City? Why should there be any subsidies at all to get a company to come to one of the most desirable business locations in the country?”

Here is the link to Stamford Advocate.

Published On: November 15th, 2018|Categories: FPI in the News|

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November 15, 2018. This article discusses the incentive package that the Governor is offering Amazon choosing to move “HQ2” to Long Island City. According to the article, the package includes a helipad and $1.5 billion in incentives, which New Yorkers and political leaders are angry about.

New Yorkers are infuriated the only infrastructure improvement they will see from the city’s deal with Amazon is apparently a helipad for Jeff Bezos and his lieutenants at HQ2 (and-a-half). It’s not the biggest item in the memorandum of understanding outlining the $1.5 billion incentive package, but it is laid out in detail in its own clause (see item B under section 5, Public Party Commitments).

Aside from Cuomo and New York Mayor Bill De Blasio, the announcement that New York “won” the competition for Amazon’s new HQ has not been well received, including by elected representatives of the Queens neighborhood where it is slated to be built. State Sen. Mike Gianaris on Twitter condemned the Amazon incentives and announced coordinated opposition.

“The wheelbarrow full of tax subsidies looks even worse than we thought,” David Kallick, deputy director at the Fiscal Policy Institute, said to the Gothamist, noting that Bezos cited good public amenities and public transit, a vibrant and diverse neighborhood and an educated workforce in Queens when announcing the selection. “So, why should the state be putting up $1.5 billion and counting to ‘lure’ Amazon to Long Island City? Why should there be any subsidies at all to get a company to come to one of the most desirable business locations in the country?”

Here is the link to Stamford Advocate.

Published On: November 15th, 2018|Categories: FPI in the News|

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