Raleigh Could Be Amazon’s Prime HQ2 Location
- Amazon’s HQ2 plans to create 50,000 jobs over 10 to 15 years
- Raleigh’s population is 22% black
Companies are still trying to figure out exactly what city Amazon’s going to build its next campus in. A new report from ATTOM Data puts Raleigh, North Carolina as the front runner for the coveted position of Amazon’s (AMZN +1.45%) HQ2. Can this move help with Amazon’s employee diversity issues?
Why This Matters: ATTOM Data Solutions which collects information on America’s property market ranked 19 of the 20 finalist cities based on housing and quality of life. With affordable homes, above-average school scores, below-average crime rates and property taxes Raleigh reigns supreme.
The projected cost for HQ2 sits at more than $5 billion with the possibility to create 50,000 jobs over 10 to 15 years. If we dig in even deeper to the Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill demographics which make up the Research Triangle Park area, it has a population that’s 22% black. This number nearly doubles the nation’s 12% black population and is slightly higher than North Carolina’s overall 21%.
This move to Raleigh could easily up the company’s black employee representation. Currently, Amazon reports around 18% of its workforce is black, though it’s important to note they fold their warehouse and retail staff into overall employment diversity numbers.
Raleigh is one of the cities where black people thrive in terms of home ownership, and income. Forbes notes 41.3% of blacks in the city are homeowners and the median black household income sits at $49,433.
Situational Awareness: If Raleigh doesn’t work out for Amazon the number two city on ATTOM’s list is Atlanta. This is a city where 24% of the STEM workforce is black and also where Home Depot (HD +2.14%) along with Coca-Cola (KO +0.86%) are headquartered. New York and Boston were the two lowest ranked cities on the list.
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