Originally published on September 18, 2017
It’s no surprise to anyone that Erie is a dying city. I’ve
been hearing it for years, along with things like “get out of here while you
still can”. But when I heard that Amazon was looking for a location for a
second headquarters, and they were looking for communities to send them applications
for their cities, immediately the place I’ve lived all my life popped in my
head. I’m not alone. I have read several letters by citizens who want Amazon to
build here. Also, on September 14, it was announced Erie was going to apply.
I know nothing about running a business. I know nothing
about politics or keeping a community stable or economies. But from what I know
about Erie, I still think it would be a good place for Amazon to potentially
settle in.
The first reason is its location. Erie is within two hours
of three major cities: Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Buffalo. It is also very
close to Canada (you can see it across the lake on a clear day). Erie has a
small airport but is again close to many major airports in these other cities.
We have a lot of traffic from our small stretch of Interstate-90. And because
we are a medium-sized city, the traffic is not all that bad. It may not seem
like it on a Saturday morning on Peach Street, but I’ve been in larger cities
occasionally and yes, it could be much worse.
The second reason is the universities. Erie is quickly
becoming a college town. We have four universities: Edinboro, Gannon,
Mercyhurst, and Penn State’s Behrend College. As a student at Mercyhurst who is
already looking for a potential job, having a major company move into my
college town new and open for graduates to fill it would be so convenient. The
programs in intelligence, communications, business, and the arts from these
universities are top-notch and graduates would thrive in a place like Amazon. (Plus
think of all the Amazon Prime traffic they would get from the thousands of
students!)
The third reason is the people. The people in Erie are very
loyal and proud of their city. There are so many small businesses all around
the city. We have several venues for performing arts, three sports teams, a
zoo, an amusement park, competitive high schools, and the peninsula. We may be
a blip on a map, the tiny jut sticking out of Pennsylvania, but we are a live,
breathing community starting to be desperate for something big to happen.
Hey, it’s a bit of a shot in the dark, since we are going up
against major, thriving cities. And the fact that in my recent job searches
Amazon jobs keep popping up has a tiny bit to do with this too. I will be
watching closely, no matter what the outcome. Perhaps this will do some good
for us. If not Amazon, then someone else.
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