ARLINGTON, Va. — Labor organizations celebrated Amazon's decision to pull out of the Long Island City of Queens.
"What the mayor and the governor did here was to negotiate in secret a really bad deal for New York," said New York City Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer.
The company blames its reversal on opposition from state and local politicians who said the influx of 25,000 high paid workers would cause housing prices to skyrocket, displace people and lead to more traffic congestion. They also worried about Amazon's affect on unions.
Those same issues have caused concern in the D.C. Area, with Amazon's plan for Crystal City.
"I certainly think it will cause people to increase their opposition, but again, I do want to underscore how very different our communities are," said Arlington Board Chair Christian Dorsey.
He says the board is very concerned about affordable housing and pushing to grow the supply now.
In a statement Amazon said, "We do not intend to open the HQ2 search at this time" and will proceed with its plans to bring 25,000 jobs to Northern Virginia.
Virginia lawmakers have already passed a law--and Governor Ralph Northam has signed it-- to give Amazon up to $750 million dollars in state incentives over the next 15 years if it creates up to nearly 38,000 jobs and 6 million square feet of office space. But there's nothing stopping Amazon from bringing more jobs.
"We're not asking Amazon to shift their planned investment for New York to here... If they want to occupy more square footage, that's all contingent on community plans that we have in place," said Dorsey.
He says he is not worried about Amazon playing hardball.
"I think it remains to be seen, if this is "If we don't get our way we're going to take our balls and go home. When it comes to Arlington, everything we have put on the table and offered Amazon has leaned in an embraced. So I don't see that as being a cause for concern here... They've been a completely honest broker and we feel good about our relationship thus far," said Dorsey.
The Arlington Board will decide the local portion of the incentive agreement with Amazon on March 16th. The $750 million in state incentive money--if the jobs are created-- won't be paid until 2024.