Amazon is reportedly reconsidering its plan to open a new headquarters in New York City.
The Washington Post reports the Seattle-based (mostly) online retailer is reassessing the move after facing substantial pushback from politicians in New York.
The tech giant announced plans to open additional headquarters in New York and Virginia last year. Since then, lawmakers and advocacy groups have been vocal about rent increases and local displacement mirroring experiences in Seattle.
Amazon released what incentives it would be receiving from each host city. That includes performance-based direct incentives of $750 million based on creating 25,000 jobs in Virginia and performance-based direct incentives of $1.5 billion based on creating 25,000 jobs in New York.
The company's New York expansion is not expected to be approved by the state until 2020, according to The Washington Post. The paper says Amazon has not yet leased or purchased office space.
Opposition to Amazon's expansion is not universally felt. Earlier this week, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed a bill "paving" the way for the company and the millions in cash incentives the state would pay Amazon.
An Amazon spokesperson sent the following statement Friday morning:
“We’re focused on engaging with our new neighbors - small business owners, educators, and community leaders. Whether it’s building a pipeline of local jobs through workforce training or funding computer science classes for thousands of New York City students, we are working hard to demonstrate what kind of neighbor we will be.”