Amazon HQ2 is open for business

Amazon.com is set to formally open the first major part of its HQ2 building. The arrival of Amazon has brought some significant changes for locals with more expected. Advocates for the project point to jobs being created and economic benefits as new businesses open. Detractors point to higher rents and gentrification of nearby neighborhoods.

Amazon HQ2 in Virginia Sets a Precedent

Northern Virginia is seeing its evolution and expansion into a more industrial and urbanized area with a new East Coast headquarters for Amazon.

A new Amazon HQ2 is bringing a host of new development and population growth to the state.

According to the Washington Post, (which is owned by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos), Arlington is set to grow with protected bike lanes, wider sidewalks, and expanded bus routes among other things.

Business is also planned to boom with more than a dozen restaurants planning to open this summer in order to capitalize on the growth of the area.

Following that, new condos are being planned along with a brand new Amtrak station.

As a result, current residents are feeling the impact in a negative way; rent increases in the area are more than doubling, which is resulting in gentrification.

Critics point to the 2010s when Amazon was located in the Seattle area, and the tech boom ended up causing rent costs to skyrocket and homelessness to increase.

But local officials claim that Amazon has been making large donations to non-profits in the area, and have promised a billion-dollar effort to help with affordable housing.