Following the election of a brand new mayor in Seattle, considered one of Amazon’s high executives reaffirmed its dedication to the area Tuesday, promising, “We aren’t going anyplace.”
David Zapolsky, Amazon chief world affairs and authorized officer, made the remark throughout an Amazon Group Affect Reception at The Spheres in Seattle, the place he and others mentioned the corporate’s philanthropic and civic initiatives from housing to meals safety.
“Clearly, this can be a time of change, each on this area and around the globe,” Zapolsky mentioned. “Amazon stays dedicated to our residence, this Puget Sound area. We aren’t going anyplace. And so we stay dedicated to constructing this group.”
It’s a uncommon public reaffirmation of the Seattle area as Amazon’s main base. It follows years of political disputes over taxes and different metropolis insurance policies that contributed to Amazon shifting extra of its workforce to Bellevue, Wash., and Northern Virginia.
With the arrival of Seattle Mayor-elect Katie Wilson, Amazon should as soon as once more set up a working relationship with a metropolis chief who ran on guarantees to deal with points corresponding to affordability, led to partly by a tech growth that Amazon helped gasoline.
Wilson defeated Mayor Bruce Harrell, a extra enterprise pleasant chief than Amazon was used to coping with throughout the tech big’s strained relations with Metropolis Corridor.
“I’ve tried to have a really supportive relationship, but in addition one on mutual accountability,” Harrell advised GeekWire in January about his dealings with Amazon. “I feel it’s understanding effectively.”
Throughout her marketing campaign in September, Wilson advised GeekWire that she goals to work with the tech sector and Amazon on progressive options to civic challenges.
A longtime group organizer and Transit Riders Union co-founder, Wilson helped design and cross Seattle’s controversial JumpStart payroll expense tax in 2020. A majority of the income — $360 million in 2024 — is generated from 10 corporations, together with Amazon.
“Clearly Amazon and the opposite huge tech corporations are essential gamers in our metropolis and in our financial system, and so I feel it’s essential that the town has working relationships there,” she mentioned.
In the identical election that ushered in Wilson, voters additionally overwhelmingly accepted Proposition 2, a plan hatched by Harrell and Metropolis Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck that may reshape the town’s enterprise and occupation (B&O) tax that applies to gross income. It can affect each small startups and huge tech corporations corresponding to Amazon.
Based on public information, Zapolsky gave $550 to Harrell’s re-election marketing campaign. Amazon HR chief Beth Galetti ($650) and Amazon Shops CEO Doug Herrington ($550) are amongst others from Amazon who contributed.
Throughout Tuesday’s occasion at The Spheres, Amazon spotlighted its philanthropic efforts and the progress being made throughout the area, together with:
- $900 million dedicated by its Housing Fund to create or protect greater than 10,000 inexpensive properties.
- 4.5 million meals delivered to households in want since 2020.
- 380,000 mattress nights offered by Mary’s Place to households experiencing homelessness.
Zapolsky mentioned Amazon’s group technique shifted as the corporate quickly expanded in Seattle. He mentioned staff and leaders have all the time cared about their group, however the firm’s efforts had been casual and comparatively small-scale in its earlier days. By 2009 and 2010, Amazon had grown far quicker than anticipated and “we had been form of backing into the size that we’ve within the metropolis,” Zapolsky mentioned — prompting firm leaders to acknowledge the necessity for a extra organized strategy.
From there, he mentioned, Amazon started making use of its core enterprise ideas to civic work: taking a long-term view, listening to companions to know what the group really wants, and specializing in the place Amazon’s distinctive capabilities — logistics, expertise, authorized experience — might make the most important affect, slightly than simply monetary contributions.
“We’re nonetheless in the midst of the journey,” Zapolsky mentioned.
Amazon counts greater than 80,000 full- and part-time staff within the Puget Sound area. About 50,000 company and tech staff are in Seattle— a quantity that shrunk from about 60,000 in 2020 as extra jobs shifted to Bellevue. The corporate minimize 14,000 staff in broad layoffs in October, with 2,303 company staff in Washington state.
Zapolsky, who has been at Amazon 26 years, known as his transfer from New York to Seattle 32 years in the past the very best resolution he ever made. He cited the town’s superb property, from its individuals and variety to its infrastructure enhancements together with the waterfront, conference heart, and Local weather Pledge Enviornment.
“Even authorities when it tries can’t screw this up,” he mentioned, including, once more, “We’re right here to remain. We need to proceed working with our companions locally, proceed making the Puget Sound area higher for our group and for our staff.”
