It’s a coast-to-coast battle among cities to land the new Amazon headquarters, and Omaha has thrown its proposal into the fight.
Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce members said they are excited to go for an opportunity like this, and it would be about bettering the Omaha region.
But first comes the pitch, and it will have to be convincing.
The Kansas City Mayor made a video expressing their interest, and others have used Alexa in videos to show why they are the best fit.
“What we have to offer Amazon is a dynamic downtown, and a bit of a blank slate that they can work with,” said Sean Johnson, the Omaha Chamber's director of business development.
Johnson said in the proposal they talked about Omaha's vision, the diverse Fortune 500 companies that already call the metro-area home, and the available cites suitable for Amazon's goals.
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“That was defiantly part of our proposal: 'Come be a part of that,' ” he said.
Tom Kessler was all for the Amazon proposal.
“Council Bluffs has Google," he said. "Maybe we should have the Amazon.”
Kessler thinks Omaha stands a chance.
“The downtown area should be very interesting to them because the aircraft can come in so close to Eppley,” he said.
Amazon has said they would provide $5 billion dollars and hire 50,000 people at whatever location is selected.
“I am sure it would bring a lot of jobs and make Omaha more of a destination because other things would pop up around,” Caitlin Little said.
“It is not just the jobs that come along with this big of a project," Johnson said, "it is the capital investment, it is the wages, and those dollars the employees earn are spent throughout the region."
It would be a ripple effect that other cities and counties in the region would feel, he said.
“A project like this provides the opportunity to retain good talent and attract new talent to the market,” Johnson said.
The last day for cities to submit their proposals is Thursday. Johnson said it will be somewhat of a waiting game to hear whether Amazon is interested.
