The County of Simcoe has thrown its hat in the ring to secure Amazon’s new North American Headquarters.
Three potential sites in South Simcoe – Innisfil, Bradford West Gwillimbury and an undisclosed site – are part of the pitch.
The announcement was made Thursday at the Lake Simcoe Regional Airport with a staged delivery of a box from Amazon to County of Simcoe Warden Gerry Marshall.
"Everything that Amazon is looking for, we have," Marshall told a crowd of business leaders and the heads of both Georgian College and Lakehead University.
The submission for Amazon HQ2, titled 'North of Ordinary,' has the full support fo both federal and provincial governments, Marshall said.
Amazon wants a number of requirements for its proposed 8 million square feet facility.
The company wants 100 acres of green field space, close proximity to a major urban centre, major highways, within 45 minutes of an international airport and access to mass transit.
The County's pitch highlights GO service, 6 'world-class' hospitals, colleges, close access to three airports including new daily flights from the Simcoe Airport to Billy Bishop in Toronto.
"We recognized quite quickly that we needed to be south of Barrie, east of the 400 to hit all of those metrics that they put in front of us,' said Marshalll.
"We pounced on this immediately. We saw it as a golden opportunity. We've got great properties, great partners, and a great location in the County of Simcoe."
There was no cost to submitting the bid.
Bringing Amazon to Simcoe County would create up to 50,000 high-paying new jobs and $5 billion U.S. in salaries.
"We've got a very good shot," said Rachel Sullivan, manager of economic development. "If Amazon does look outside the United States, Canada is a great option. Ontario is a wonderful place to land and Simcoe County is the best place to put the shovel in the ground."
The deadline for bids is midnight tonight and Simcoe County is among many communities vying for the facility in a North America-wide request for proposals.
In addition to hitting all the requirements, the County says its biggest selling feature is lifestyle and quality of life.
"We're all here for the same reasons Amazon should be. Quality of life, affordability, less hubub. A great place to be," Marshall said.
The County expects to hear back from Amazon in 2018.
