Sun Corridor Inc. Sends Amazon a Full-sized Saguaro as Headquarters Welcome Gift
Contact:
Laura Shaw, Chief Marketing Officer
Sun Corridor Inc.
Cell: 520-609-5972
Laura.shaw@suncorridorinc.com
**NEWS UPDATE: September 19, 2017**
Amazon donated Sun Corridor Inc’s saguaro cactus gift to the Arizona- Sonora Desert Museum.
Amazon Tweet
Media Coverage:
U.S. News & World Report/Associated Press
TUCSON, AZ – September 13, 2017 – Sun Corridor Inc., Southern Arizona’s economic development group, today loaded a 21-foot Saguaro cactus on a flat-bed truck to deliver to Jeff Bezos at Amazon, in a bid to bring Amazon’s highly-coveted second headquarters to Tucson and Southern Arizona – home to a million saguaros. The Saguaro is the iconic cactus of the Sonoran desert, which can grow to over 40 feet tall and live several hundred years.
Amazon announced late last week that they are planning to build a second corporate headquarters location. Dubbed “Project Amazon HQ2”, Amazon says that it is considering metropolitan areas with more than 1 million in population, will hire as many as fifty-thousand (50,000) new full-time employees over the next ten to fifteen years and invest over $5 billion in capital. The new location will include a site that is urban/suburban and require 8 million square feet of space.
Together with its state, regional and local partners, Sun Corridor Inc. is currently working to gather the necessary information and data for submittal. The RFP is due 10/19, with a decision in 2018.
We are excited by Amazon’s latest announcement and will pursue this opportunity aggressively to make a compelling pitch for Tucson and Southern Arizona as its second headquarters location.
“We wanted to make sure Mr. Bezos and his team notice us and send a message of ‘we have room for you to grow here for the long term’ – nothing signifies that better than a Saguaro,” said Joe Snell, President & CEO, Sun Corridor Inc. “We’ll work with Governor Ducey and the Arizona Commerce Authority closely to submit a strong case.”
“Tucson just beat out several cities for Caterpillar’s new Surface Mining and Technology Division headquarters,” said Dave Hutchens, chairman of Sun Corridor Inc. and president & CEO of UNS Energy Corp., Tucson Electric Power and UniSource Energy Services. “Together with Raytheon and other area corporations, we will demonstrate that we have the right assets to win this deal.”
“Tucson can play at this level,” said Fletcher McCusker, chairman of the Rio Nuevo Revitalization District. “We just wanted to make sure our friends in Seattle noticed us, and provide a good home to our landmark cactus, which I expect will become Seattle’s biggest tourist attraction.”
“Pima County is an ideal location for Amazon’s proposed second headquarters. We have the land, the workforce, the logistics and the enterprising and entrepreneurial can-do attitude the innovative world-leader in business needs,” said Sharon Bronson, chair of the Pima County Board of Supervisors.
“I think when Tucson made the short list for the Tesla gigafactory, that woke a lot of people up as to the potential this community has,” said Mayor Jonathan Rothschild, City of Tucson. “We have a strong tech workforce and an active entrepreneurial ecosystem. We’re a center for trade, transportation and logistics. Plus, we have outstanding quality of life. I don’t see any other city that has our exact set of advantages.”
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About Sun Corridor Inc.:
Sun Corridor Inc. offers a comprehensive approach of programs and services to facilitate the creation of high-wage jobs, through the attraction of new primary companies, the retention/expansion of existing primary companies and increased business creation/entrepreneurship strength throughout Southern Arizona. For more information, visit www.suncorridorinc.com.