SEATTLE, WA - Do you hear that? That's the sound of stampeding feet as folks race to the closest information porthole to gather the news—Amazon sent the world into a flurry as it announced the much-anticipated Top 20 list of cities it is considering for its second headquarters, or HQ2, after 238 cities vying for the title entered their name into the ring.

“Thank you to all 238 communities that submitted proposals. Getting from 238 to 20 was very tough—all the proposals showed tremendous enthusiasm and creativity,” said Holly Sullivan, Amazon Public Policy, in a recent press release. “Through this process, we learned about many new communities across North America that we will consider as locations for future infrastructure investment and job creation.”

The 20 HQ2 candidates were picked based on the proposals that best meet the RFP criteria. Moving forward, the retailer will work closely with the locations to take a closer look at their proposals, as they request additional information and evaluate the feasibility of a future partnership that would include evaluating hiring plans and the advantages for both the company and the community in which it is set.

With plans to invest over $5 billion into HQ2, which will hold up to 50,000 well-paid positions, the facility is looking to be a full-fledged headquarters for the retailer and not just a satellite office. While the HQ2 business itself, including hiring and investment, will contribute tremendously to the community, construction and ongoing operations are expected to generate tens of thousands of additional jobs and tens of billions of dollars in further investment in the communities surrounding the selected city.

After proposals poured in—some stranger than others according to The New York Times—from cities in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, the retailer announced that the following cities are still in the running to be the second headquarters’s home:

• Atlanta, GA
• Austin, TX
• Boston, MA
• Chicago, IL
• Columbus, OH
• Dallas, TX
• Denver, CO
• Indianapolis, IN
• Los Angeles, CA
• Miami, FL
• Montgomery County, MD
• Nashville, TN
• Newark, NJ
• New York City, NY
• Northern Virginia, VA
• Philadelphia, PA
• Pittsburgh, PA
• Raleigh, NC
• Toronto, ON
• Washington, D.C.

If you’re wanting to look further into these developments as they arise, you can check in with the official website: www.amazon.com/amazonHQ2.

The final decision is likely to take place in 2018, so here we go, folks! Let the games begin!

Amazon