MD Amazon HQ2 Odds: Jeff Bezos Says He'll Use 'Intuition'

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD — As speculation grows that the D.C. area and specifically Northern Virginia is the frontrunner over Montgomery County, Maryland, and other metros to land Amazon's massive second headquarters, founder Jeff Bezos said in an interview that ultimately his "intuition" would be the deciding factor.

CNBC reports that Bezos said in a Thursday interview with author and journalist Walter Isaacson that this is the kind of decision you make "with your heart." Amazon executives reportedly have also visited a few locations on the shortlist in the last few months, and Bezos has said a decision is likely by the end of the year.

Amazon's HQ2 would involve billions of dollars in investment and around 50,000 employees. The D.C. area has three spots on Amazon's shortlist of 20 finalists: Northern Virginia, D.C, and Montgomery County, Md.

Potential sites have offered incentives to lure the e-commerce company to their areas. While Maryland approved $5 billion in tax incentives for Amazon, Virginia and DC leaders have not publicly released their pitches for Amazon, WAMU reports. Greg LeRoy of Good Jobs First, a watchdog looking at economic incentives, told WAMU the DC area doesn't need to offer incentives because of its large skilled workforce, transportation and nearby airports. However, the competitive nature of the selection process means officials can be pressured to offer incentives.

Crystal City in northern Virginia has reportedly emerged as the frontrunner in the bid to land Amazon's massive second headquarters. Recently, the New York Times Times spoke to multiple analysts and experts who seemed to agree that Northern Virginia — and specifically Crystal City — would be an attractive location for several reasons: it's directly adjacent to Reagan National Airport and is close to Dulles International Airport, most of the buildings there are owned by one developer, it has its own Metro station, it has a prime location near D.C., it has a diverse and highly educated workforce, and it is in the business-friendly state of Virginia.

There are 20 finalists, including Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles and other major cities, and many have reportedly offered incentives to Amazon to move there. It is a highly sought after project because Amazon claims it would include $5 billion in investment and 50,000 high-paying jobs.

SEE ALSO:

• NoVa Surges To No. 1 On Amazon HQ2 Rankings List
• Amazon Job Ad Reignites HQ2 Rumors For Maryland

There are other reasons to suspect a site in the greater Washington, D.C., region have the best chance of landing the massive project. Bezos already owns the Washington Post, as well as D.C.'s largest mansion, and it makes sense he would want to have a significant presence close to a Congress that could look to target his company's labor practices, for example.

Bezos said at an event hosted in D.C. earlier this fall that he expects to make a decision before the end of the year.

An Amazon job listing in the DC metropolitan area posted in late July stirred up talk about what it means for frontrunners of the second headquarters in the region. The economic development manager position involves working on economic incentives with state and local government, as well as chambers of commerce and "other key public/private stakeholder groups." It also involves "supporting the site selection process." The position does not mention working with the federal government. Candidates must have eight or more years of economic incentive or business development experience.

But while the DC area sites have emerged as HQ2 frontrunners, Amazon isn't indicating the job has any ties to the HQ2 site. An Amazon spokesman told the Puget Sound Business Journal the position isn't related to HQ2 and could be based in either DC or Seattle. Amazon has not posted the job in any other location, according to the Journal.

Washington, DC, proposed the Anacostia Riverfront, NoMa-Union Station, Capitol Hill East and Shaw-Howard University for an HQ2 site. Northern Virginia sites could include Arlington-Alexandria and Fairfax-Loudoun Counties.

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Includes reporting by Patch Editor Dan Taylor.

PHOTO: The Amazon logo is projected onto a screen at a press conference on September 6, 2012 in Santa Monica, California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)