Amazon HQ2 New York plans did not have to end this way

"It's over," Mayor Bill de Blasio said in an interview with WNYC on Friday. "And it's amazing and it's disappointing and it's disrespectful to the people of New York City."

The news caught many off guard. Amazon obviously didn't want officials to know ahead of time. According to reports, the company had still been in talks with officials from Wednesday afternoon, with little sign that a face was about to happen. In a conversation with CNN Bishop Mitchell Taylor ̵[ads1]1; co-chair of New York's HQ2 Community Advisory Committee – said that nothing seemed unusual during meetings he held with Amazon liaison Thursday morning, just hours before announcement.

"To get a call out of the blue saying" Look, we take our ball, we go home "- it's totally inappropriate," the mayor said about how he was informed. "I've never experienced anything like this."

When you consider the company's strained relationship with New York's leaders and activists, it may not be a surprise that Amazon would only be done with everything. Jodi Seth, Amazon's Head of Political Communication, painted a problematic picture in an interview with NBC News . Some local officials refused to meet with the company at all, while others said different reasons made it difficult for the company to gain broad support, including Amazon's anti-union practices and the $ 3 billion in tax-subsidized incentives. Seth said Amazon had little interest in working in such a long-term controversial environment and has no plans to reopen those talks with New York City or State. But it didn't have to end this way.

Although it is fair at some level that Amazon felt stymied by this political climate, the company still seems little at the end of all this. As a technique and retail titanium that is almost impossible to avoid in daily life, the company has come to expect a certain level of fealty from the people and organizations it is about. It's used to entering a room and getting what it wants. In this case, dealing with activists, vocal critics, and pressure from key lawmakers meant that Amazon should not have another typical simple time – the mindset seems to be that, as useful as another campus would be, it would not be worth the trouble . Lots of brilliant people working on Amazon, though; is it possible that no one saw the loss that comes?

I find it hard to believe that Amazon could not have handled this better. Could it have managed the conversation better? Could it have been more transparent in their deals? Could it have tried to work more closely, more functionally with legislators involved? Does this whole thing seem like a big waste of time? Yes, to all of the above.

Mayor de Blasio has not separated from characterizing Amazon as a petulant, and it honestly calls true to me as well. Look, Amazon has not only deleted its plans to open a headquarters in Queens; It has decided to build a second campus to complete the upcoming Virginia campus completely. "We do not intend to recover HQ2 searches at this time," said Amazon's statement. "We will continue as planned in Northern Virginia and Nashville, and we will continue to employ and grow across our 17 corporate offices and tech hubs in the US and Canada."

Clearly, the idea that another HQ2 campus will grow into besides Virginia was important to Amazon, but not important enough to work toward thoughtfully. The company has been around for over 20 years, but as the dust settles down, its rashes come at least slightly indecent.

And now that Amazon is giving up on New York City, its inhabitants are again dealing with aftermath – for better and worse. Despite vocal opposition from some locals and lawmakers, a poll from Quinnipiac University last year backed that at all, New York City voters supported the idea that Amazon was moving to Long Island City. Some now realize that without the island, Long Island City will not get 25,000 new jobs – not to mention career training programs meant to help locals find work on Amazon and companies like that. Some local businesses, knocking on an influx of new customers, no longer have this opportunity. And to a greater extent, some have expressed concern that New York, by driving Amazon away, has sent a terrible signal to the world in search of opportunities to grow.

Meanwhile, an impromptu celebration broke out in Queens & Jackson's neighborhood after Amazon made its announcement, with activists enjoying the victory. To these New Yorkers, Amazon's planned moves and the secret NY government dealers were poor capabilities, causing the weeks spent to undress the company's backroom tactics that raised awareness of the re-enactment that Amazon will bring.

It is true that New York's pitch brings Amazon to Long Island City happened with little support from the communities that ultimately hosted the company. It's not likely that Amazon would have found a way to satisfy everyone in this camp, but it says the company barely bothered to try. Instead of having something with people on the issues that are important to them, Amazon has hit.

At the end of all, Amazon has somehow pulled off a surprisingly impressive performance. Its reviews drew the activists, and the plan to leave frustrated people hoping for economic opportunity – now Amazon has managed to become a bad guy for just about everyone involved. If nothing else, allow Amazon's choice to move away from the table in New York, warning the cities still clinging to a piece of HQ2. Here you look at you, Newark, Miami, Rochester, Warren and Danbury.