After local officials vied for Prince George’s County to host Amazon’s second headquarters, it didn’t make the cut, the company announced Thursday.
Amazon reached a list of 20 top contenders, including Montgomery County, Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. Other locations across the country, such as Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City also remain in the running.
“This is tremendous news for Montgomery County, our entire state, and further proof that Maryland is truly open for business,” Gov. Larry Hogan wrote in a statement. “Going forward, we will continue working with our partners in Montgomery County […] to ensure that we do everything possible to bring this project home.”
College Park joined forces as part of Prince George’s County’s submitted proposal, Mayor Patrick Wojahn said. Howard County and Baltimore were also thrown into the mix of proposed sites, and Hogan said he would lobby in favor of the new headquarters coming to Baltimore’s Port Covington, The Baltimore Sun reported.
The Seattle-based company said it received 238 proposals across North America for the new HQ2, which it says will create 50,000 jobs and draw a $5 billion investment.
[Read more: City officials want College Park to host Amazon’s new headquarters]
If housed in College Park, officials proposed putting HQ2 in the Discovery District — a $2 billion private-public initiative to revitalize the Route 1 corridor and spur greater city-university collaboration — which includes this university’s M Square Research Park, Innovation District and the Metro-accessible community along River Road.
Amazon issued a release during the fall stating preferences for its ultimate HQ2 location, including a metropolitan area with more than 1 million people, a business-friendly environment, and an urban or suburban location with technical talent. The city already houses a pickup location that opened underneath the Terrapin Row apartments in February.
Among the company’s site criteria included 8 million square feet of building space, on-site mass transit and a close proximity to highways and international airports, as well as a potential for sustainability and to attract millennial workers.
[Read more: “A mad dash”: County officials rush to submit College Park’s Amazon HQ2 proposal]
College Park officials in September praised the city for its growing innovation, thousands of potential employees and its nearby student pipeline from the University of Maryland. University President Wallace Loh said in the fall that the advantages of having HQ2 in College Park aren’t limited to the campus or the city, as this university’s strategic partnership with the University of Maryland, Baltimore, is also a benefit.
Amazon said it will choose its new headquarters location before the end of this year.