City Council Votes To Pen Letter To Amazon For National Headquarters Opportunity

NEW BEDFORD — A unanimous City Council vote on Thursday night passed a motion to call for the Economic Development Council, Mayor’s Office, and councilors to reach out to officials at Amazon to express interest in locating a company headquarters in New Bedford.

The online shipping giant recently announced that it is actively searching for a city to call home for its second national headquarters. Amazon is looking for a city close to a high concentration of colleges and universities as well as effective modes of travel and shipping.

With New Bedford’s location, notorious harbor, and growing regional airport many Councilors see the Whaling City as the right fit for Amazon. Councilor At-Large Linda Morad says that there isn’t city in the area that can compete with New Bedford as the best choice for an Amazon headquarters.

"I was very disappointed and was vocal when Amazon went to Fall River. Shame on the Economic Development Council and this administration for letting that happen,” said Morad. “Amazon should be in New Bedford. This is the hub of the south coast. You compare Fall River to New Bedford, there is no comparison."

As the unanimous vote to pen a joint letter to Amazon proves, all of the councilors find the possibility of bringing a national headquarters to the Whaling City would be extremely beneficial to the local economy. They argue that the amount of tax revenue the city can generate combined with the amount of jobs the headquarters could provide is just too much to ignore.

"New Bedford deserves something of this magnitude to bring those kinds of high-paying jobs to the city, and bring that kind of talent to the city,” Councilor At-Large Brian Gomes said.

The letter would invite officials from the company to join elected officials on a tour of the city followed by a seafood luncheon to discuss what New Bedford has to offer in locating an Amazon headquarters.