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It doesn't hurt Rochester or other NY State to actually compete in this competition, because it set itself up for other companies and for ideas for companies here to expand or grow. So, I say compete anyway, because it could set up these areas for growth in other ways.
I recognized this too. The chances are slim that Rochester would land this, but competing for it brings valuable exposure of our region to business leaders for other potential opportunities. Maybe not this opportunity, but others could come to fruition. I'm glad our leaders recognize this and are competing. Far better than to not even try. Promoting Rochester- it's their job to do so. If not them, then who?
That second point is why I mentioned the Drone Industry in regards to the CNY region.
I think a part of the issue with NY goes beyond the "business climate", but people forget about the industries that are being invested in within the state in order for it to be competitive. It doesn't hurt Rochester or other NY State to actually compete in this competition, because it set itself up for other companies and for ideas for companies here to expand or grow. So, I say compete anyway, because it could set up these areas for growth in other ways.
Agreed 100% on this.
Another bit of news today. Schumer stated today that he's going to be meeting with Jeff Bezos (Amazon CEO) and that he's going to be pushing for the HQ to be in NY. He also stated that of the 3 cities doing a proposal, (Buffalo, Rochester, Brooklyn), Rochester is at the top of his list and he's going to push for Amazon to locate here.
I don't think any other city emulates Seattle or San Francisco culture, although smaller, than Rochester. Look at the Fringe Festival (3rd largest in the WORLD), the Jazz fest, the Finger Lakes Wine region, and on and on.... We lost 60,000 Kodak jobs and replaced them without missing a beat. 18 local universities, many amongst the best in the country. Highly educated workforce. Highly rated in patents per population. What's not to love?
I do not see Amazon building HQ2 in NY. Definitely not in Rochester. The airport is far too small and has very limited nonstop flights. The IT folks they need just aren't here. The taxes here SUCK. I'm expecting it to got to a city like Atlanta or Austin...places with massive infrastructure. Atlanta is home to almost every Fortune 500 company. Some have headquarters there and the rest have major offices there. Rochester is no competition for Atlanta.
It's the airports lack of connections and the lack of mass transit. They specifically asked for both. The cost and talent is good, but it's missing two pretty key things. What's Rochester going to do? Promise to build out and expand the subway and add more flights to the airport? The latter is doable, but the former doesn't look to be likely.
I agree it's worth a shot if only to have the city and state focus on how to highlight the pros for doing business in the state.
I do not see Amazon building HQ2 in NY. Definitely not in Rochester. The airport is far too small and has very limited nonstop flights. The IT folks they need just aren't here. The taxes here SUCK. I'm expecting it to got to a city like Atlanta or Austin...places with massive infrastructure. Atlanta is home to almost every Fortune 500 company. Some have headquarters there and the rest have major offices there. Rochester is no competition for Atlanta.
Rochester's infrastructure is just fine. We have highways built for 3 times the population. A subway is not going to make or break it. And the talent is 100% absolutely here. A favorable tax package can easily be worked out. The size of the airport is also just fine. The only valid argument is the direct flights. But I 'm sure through some back channels with political and company leaders involved, if Amazon were to locate here, the needed flights could be worked out.
But also, places like Austin and Atlanta are very expensive to do business because of the cost of labor. Let's say that it costs 10 grand less a year to pay an employee in Rochester vs. Atlanta.
If 50,000 jobs are actually created, that is 500 million in extra expenses to locate in Atlanta vs. Rochester. You think shareholders would take a massive ongoing expense like that lightly?
There's much more than simply looking at what direct flights are available to an airport in making a big decision like this.
Rochester's infrastructure is just fine. We have highways built for 3 times the population. A subway is not going to make or break it. And the talent is 100% absolutely here. A favorable tax package can easily be worked out. The size of the airport is also just fine. The only valid argument is the direct flights. But I 'm sure through some back channels with political and company leaders involved, if Amazon were to locate here, the needed flights could be worked out.
But also, places like Austin and Atlanta are very expensive to do business because of the cost of labor. Let's say that it costs 10 grand less a year to pay an employee in Rochester vs. Atlanta.
If 50,000 jobs are actually created, that is 500 million in extra expenses to locate in Atlanta vs. Rochester. You think shareholders would take a massive ongoing expense like that lightly?
There's much more than simply looking at what direct flights are available to an airport in making a big decision like this.
Rochester's infrastructure is fine? You need to get out more! There's a reason it's not a growing city like Atlanta and Charlotte. No one said anything about a subway.
This airport is a small airport. It does not compete with cities like Philadelphia, Charlotte, or Atlanta which are all hubs and have plenty of nonstop flights.
A tax package....yeah that's just what tax payers need...to give away more money. We're already the highest taxed state in the nation so why not give more away?
Labor is cheaper in Austin and Atlanta. Payroll taxes are also less. You're just making up numbers. If 50,000 jobs are created, they're all not paid the same.
What was the last massive company that built a headquarters in Rochester? And when was that? What's the status of that company today?
Rochester's infrastructure is fine? You need to get out more! There's a reason it's not a growing city like Atlanta and Charlotte. No one said anything about a subway.
This airport is a small airport. It does not compete with cities like Philadelphia, Charlotte, or Atlanta which are all hubs and have plenty of nonstop flights.
A tax package....yeah that's just what tax payers need...to give away more money. We're already the highest taxed state in the nation so why not give more away?
Labor is cheaper in Austin and Atlanta. Payroll taxes are also less. You're just making up numbers. If 50,000 jobs are created, they're all not paid the same.
What was the last massive company that built a headquarters in Rochester? And when was that? What's the status of that company today?
Austin lacks the public transportation and TX actually has high property taxes. Atlanta is a possibility, but the "culture" aspect may or may not be an issue.
Also, corporate welfare is likely to be a part of this regardless of where this goes. So, that is an aspect for all areas to consider.
With this said, I'd still send a packet/idea in for the reasons I mentioned earlier.
I don't think Rochester is going to get it, but...
People forget that Rochester supported Kodak with 60K employees at one point and Xerox/B&L were pretty good sized as well. Because of this, we have a lot of empty real estate and land with utilities that could be re developed.
Lack of public transport? This is a self fulfilling prophecy. If there was decent demand for it, I bet the county would adjust.
People complain about lack of IT folks. There's plenty of these people here in town - we have several colleges and why can't Amazon train people?
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