

Let the games begin! Amazon recently announced it is looking to build a second global headquarters (HQ2) somewhere in North America to supplement its Seattle home base, and with its Oct. 19 deadline for proposals come and gone, the company has confirmed it received 238 proposals from cities in three countries, including 45 US states, six Canadian provinces, and three Mexican states. The proposed $5 billion (USD) project is expected to generate up to 50,000 high paying jobs. Amazon’s wishlist includes a city with a metropolitan area of at least a million people, close proximity to an international airport, reliable mass transit, the ability to attract top technical talent, financial incentives, and the space to expand the headquarters to as much as eight million square feet in the next decade. In Canada, 11 cities submitted applications for HQ2; let’s take a look at their bids.