The documents, prepared by NOACA for the city’s bid, were furnished to local media after the Ohio Court of Claims ruled that the information could not be construed as a confidential trade secret and should be made public. Mark Naymik filed the complaint that led to the documents’ release. NOACA did not appeal the court’s decision.
“NOACA believes the ruling of the Special Master does not fully understand the position of the Agency as they relate to competitive elements of the bid proposal,” NOACA said in a statement accompanying the documents. “However, NOACA leadership believes it is in the best interest of the community to not pursue the matter on appeal with the Court. Further action would only be a waste of public resources and divert the general public’s attention away from more pressing matters in our region.”
As the special master noted, the documents contain generally promotional rhetoric touting Cleveland’s advantageous location, public transit and highway infrastructure. The information (portions of which were likely cut and pasted into the bid itself) celebrate Cleveland’s manageable commute times; its expanding network of bike and pedestrian trails; various downtown amenities; and the accessibility of Hopkins, Akron-Canton and Burke Lakefront Airports.
But the big news, which had been kept secret until the documents’ release, is the site location.
“Initial build-out of Amazon HQ2 will be located in the center of downtown at the historic Post Office Plaza and Terminal Tower facilities,” the NOACA docs say. “This location provides unmatched access to public transportation, as Cleveland’s main public transit hub is located within the complex.”
The only other new information contained within the documents was a proposed transit incentive, in which Amazon employees would have received a 25-percent discount on monthly RTA passes. The incentive was pegged at more than $120 million over 15 years.
Additionally, if Amazon were to locate in Cleveland, the city would purportedly “accelerate” a massive expansion of the public transit system, increasing total commuter rail mileage from 37 to 111 by 2029. This aspirational tripling of capacity had been outlined in NOACA’s Long-Range Plan.
“The future of public transit—particularly rail—” the NOACA docs claims, “is bright.”
This article appears in May 9-15, 2018.
That’s it? THAT was it? I never comment on articles, but jeeze… I’m trying not to fall asleep.
To our local elected officials (who probably won’t see this, unfortunately): Do you have any idea of how a tech company wants to operate these days? Oh… What’s that? You don’t? It’s quite obvious now. NEWS FLASH: Tech companies want state-of-the-art; not some old building (an old building which I love, by the way, and know is an icon to our city) in need of renovations! I mean, seriously, Amazon can build whatever office space they want, and you should’ve let them–at BURKE LAKEFRONT AIRPORT.
Way. To. Blow. It….
Thw wing-nuts at the PD website are ripping the bid to shreds. Hundreds of negative comments about Cleveland and the people who run it and the ideas that were so laughable. Recycle old buildings? Triple the size of the Rapid when they can barely afford to keep it running at its present size? And more. A lot more.
And the dumbest idea of all was to give out discounted RTA passes to all those newly-arrived car-hating Millennials. Especially when RTA is hurting for moolah. If Amazon can afford to pay these entitled brats a hundred grand a year, the least the brats can do is cough up a few bucks for a monthly pass at the regular rates. T them, it would be like a nickel to ride the NYC subway used to be. Hell, the Amazon workers would have been so well-off that they would have easily shelled out hundreds of dollars for a pricey meal at a foodie joint or a night on the town, so let them pay the going rate to get to their lucrative jobs every day, same as low-income Joe and Josephine Six-Pack have to do. What a slap in the face to all the OTHER Clevelanders, most of whom are struggling.
But it’s all moot anyway. Even with a fistful of brilliant ideas, Cleveland never had a prayer. Not when the workforce is so under-qualified and under-educated for the jobs that would have been available,. Why? Because…our schools suck. Amazon was certainly aware of that, so Cleveland was never seriously considered. Failing to make the cut had nothing to do with coolness of the city or sites offered, or even transportation. Cleveland was not in the running because our educational system is a sick joke. End of story. Deal with it and move on.
Cleveland has the literacy of Malawi, the infant mortality of West Africa, and the money of Sudan.
We have more in common with the third world than we do with a high tech city.
Rock and roll!
Facts About Literacy
66% of Cleveland residents are functionally illiterate
Some Cleveland neighborhoods have an illiteracy rate as high as 95%
Functional illiteracy is defined as having math, reading, or language skills below a 4th grade level
At this level, people may struggle to read a bus schedule, medicine bottle or job application
An adult without a high school diploma earns 42% less than an adult with a diploma
A mothers reading skill is the greatest determinant of her childrens future academic success, and outweighs other factors like neighborhood and family income
The percentage of adults without a high school diploma who live in poverty is twice that of those who have a high school diploma
Why Adult Literacy Matters [infographic]
More facts about literacy
Sources: Center for Urban Poverty and Social Change, Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve University; National Assessment of Adult Literacy, Ohio Literacy Resource Center
Is it any wonder the morons at Downtown Cleveland, and Team NEO fought so hard to keep this laughable proposal out of the public spotlight ?
It just adds to the body of proof that the CLE is in no way shape or form ready to compete in the 21st century for anything more demanding than robotic warehouses, 2nd rate casinos, and landscape contracts.
No…no surprise here. They tried to keep it under wraps to avoid being laughed out of town.
And becoming the laughingstock of the whole country. Now the secret is out.
Seriously? .TOWER CITY? DISCOUNT TRANSIT PASSES? Are you KIDDING ME?
HahahahahahahahahaHA! Another embarassing story out of our world-class city.
As in…Third World class.
SSDD…
Absolutely embarrassing. If you love Cleveland, this proposal is a swift kick in the groin, followed by about 45 minutes of stomping in the same area. This is what happens when you let a group of people make a bid to a high-tech company and they have no idea what a high-tech company wants. Well done, Cleveland leaders, please help yourselves to another term in office where you most likely skim extras and continue to give yourselves the good life.