Amazon has paused construction on its second headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, in the e-commerce and cloud giant’s latest cost-cutting effort.
Amazon has about 8,000 employees based at its site in Arlington, working on the completed phase 1 of a new campus called Met Park. Construction of the second phase, known as PenPlace, has already begun this year. The site includes three office buildings and “Helix,” a 350-foot corkscrew-shaped tower that will be the architectural centerpiece of the new office center — the largest outside of Amazon’s hometown of Seattle.
The company said the pause was not related to the new job cuts it announced earlier this year, where it planned to cut 18,000 people from its workforce, after years of rapid growth.
“We’re always evaluating our space plans to make sure they fit our business needs and create a great experience for our employees,” John Schoettler, Amazon’s head of real estate, said in a statement Friday.
Amazon said it was still committed to the $2.5bn project, which it hopes will bring 25,000 workers to the area outside Washington DC by 2030.
The so-called HQ2 delay, which was first reported by Bloomberg, is symbolic of how Amazon has been looking to put the brakes on a year of heavy investment and expansion. It has also been scrapped or delayed other office plans in the US, and told some that because to start on the graduate plan they have to wait.
Amazon’s decision to build a second large office campus outside Seattle has sparked a bidding frenzy in 2018, as several cities ask to be considered as locations for the tens of thousands of high-paying jobs the e-commerce group promises. Stonecrest, a town in Georgia, offered to change its name to “Amazon” if chosen.
After making a shortlist of 20 cities, Amazon’s initial decision to split the proposal between Arlington and the neighboring New York City area of Queens drew heavy criticism and accusations that the company used the bidding process as a way to get bigger tax breaks. and other incentives.
Amazon ended its New York plan after local opposition led by Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, but said it would move forward with plans in Arlington.
No date has been given when construction will resume. However, the company has committed to several public use projects that will be completed by early 2025.
“Since Met Park will have space to accommodate more than 14,000 employees, we decided to move the PenPlace groundbreaking a little bit,” added Schoettler.
“Our second headquarters will definitely be a multiyear project, and we remain committed to Arlington, Virginia, and the greater Capital Region – which includes investing in affordable housing, funding computer science education in area schools, and supporting dozens of non-local profit[s].”