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All across North America, cities are salivating at what may be one of the biggest economic sweepstakes of all time. The winner will play host to one of North America’s largest companies, Amazon, as it seeks a second world headquarters.

The numbers for this so-called HQ2 project are staggering: A US$5 billion investment, 50,000 new jobs, average annual salaries exceeding $100,000, more than eight million square feet of space.

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Fortunately, Metro Vancouver is one of the regions in the HQ2 Derby — and with good reason. We are a livable, world-class city with strong schools, a talented workforce and high-quality transportation infrastructure that is only getting better.

Does Vancouver have the available housing to accommodate 50,000 new employees? Of course not — but neither does any other city in the running, so we’re on level ground.

But when it comes to housing, it’s no secret that Metro has an affordability problem. Fortunately, with Amazon looking at a 10- to 15-year window, we have time to improve things if we are selected. Either way, we must take steps now before the lack of housing affordability becomes a further economic disincentive for our region.