Amazon Cancels Plans for New York City Headquarters

Amazon is pulling the plug on its planned second headquarters in a New York City suburb. 

The e-commerce giant said Thursday that it has decided not to move forward with plans to build a new headquarters in Queens neighborhood of Long Island City after it faced growing backlash over the move, which would have added some 25,000 jobs to the region. 

"For Amazon, the commitment to build a new headquarters requires positive, collaborative relationships with state and local elected officials who will be supportive over the long-term," reads a blog post from the company. "While polls show that 70% of New Yorkers support our plans and investment, a number of state and local politicians have made it clear that they oppose our presence and will not work with us to build the type of relationships that are required to go forward with the project we and many others envisioned in Long Island City." 

Amazon announced in November that it would build new headquarters — dubbed HQ2 — in both New York and Northern Virginia. The facilities were expected to become home to around 50,000 workers. The headquarters in the National Landing neighborhood of Arlington, Va., are expected to continue as planned. 

In New York, Amazon would have taken advantage of around $3 billion in city and state incentives, a move that drew opposition from local lawmakers. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio had both supported the move. 

Amazon does not plan to search for an additional HQ2 but will continue to grow its existing operations in the New York area, which includes over 5,000 employees across Brooklyn, Manhattan and Staten Island.

Amazon, one of the world's most valuable companies with a market cap of over $802 billion, barely took a hit to its stock on the news. Shares were trading down less than 1 percent during trading on the Nasdaq on Thursday morning. 

The company statement continues: "We are disappointed to have reached this conclusion — we love New York, its incomparable dynamism, people, and culture — and particularly the community of Long Island City, where we have gotten to know so many optimistic, forward-leaning community leaders, small business owners, and residents."