It seems like the whole town is buzzing with excitement about Boston and Somerville making Amazon’s 20-city shortlist for the company’s new HQ2 headquarters. Now it’s game on as Greater Boston/Somerville mount an all-out effort to beat the other 19 cities equally eager to land the Amazon deal — a deal that would potentially bring $5 billion and 50,000 jobs to the area. Even though the final decision won’t come right away, it is significant that Greater Boston/Somerville was selected from Amazon’s original long list of 238 cities — and safe to assume that all of the 20 selected cities are serious contenders.
So, I understand why everybody is geeked up. The Massachusetts economy would get a huge economic boost. But, we’d likely have to give a lot to get a lot. And I can’t put aside my nagging concerns that what we’d give in tax incentives and other policy sweeteners might leave the state on the down side of the ledger. Now to be fair, plenty of critics have long complained about the state’s film tax credit for the same reason. It gives filmmakers a big break in exchange for bringing productions to Massachusetts. I would argue that the indirect benefits like tourism, and jobs for non-movie employees plus the directly related production jobs have more than made up for those incentives. Besides, those tax exemptions will be a pittance compared to the corporate dowry we’ll need to claim the rose in this last round of Amazon Bachelor. By the way, Chicago and Newark, two of the other 20 finalists, promised lucrative tax credits early on.
But, maybe there is a way to get more for our money. Amazon isn’t the only big tech company looking to expand. Apple, Inc. recently announced that it was looking for a location for its new campus — with $10 billion dedicated to new data centers and thousands of new jobs. Apple President Tim Cook says the new campus will offer customer support operations.
Lawrence Mayor Daniel Rivera tried to persuade Amazon that his city and the Merrimack Valley offers “location, location and workforce.” Mayor Rivera emphasized the ready pool of immigrant workers in addition to the available land space in the region and affordable housing. If Amazon wants to forgo all that, maybe Apple doesn’t. By locating in Lawrence, Apple could significantly diversify its employee ranks — something it’s been struggling to do. And there’d be plenty of land for future expansion.
Of course, there would be tax incentives, but Apple announced this new campus by bragging about contributing $350 billion to the U.S. economy over the next five years — shifting overseas cash because of the recent tax cut bill. So, what about Massachusetts approaching the multi-billion-dollar company with a different kind of plan, a holistic one, a plan that stands out from the competition not for its giveaways, but its givebacks? How about fashioning a plan that gives Apple the chance to take the kind of civic engagement pioneered by local philanthropist David Mugar to the next level? Imagine a new Apple campus that’s not just a shiny tech operation, but part of the heart and soul of a 21st century Greater Boston — redefining innovation as human capital not just capital gain.
It is exhilarating to be on the top 20 list, I know, but let’s not miss another opportunity because we are blinded by the glare of the Amazon klieg lights. As the African proverb warns, “only a fool tests the depth of water with both feet.”
