Detroit might be something of a long shot when it comes to grabbing the site selection brass ring of the decade — Amazon HQ2 — but now it also has Windsor, Ontario, joining its effort to woo the e-commerce giant. Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens met with billionaire developer Dan Gilbert to discuss a binational bid, the Windsor Star reports.
Toronto and Ottawa will also put in bids, but a Detroit-Windsor team would mean access to tech talent in both countries. Talent from the Canadian side might be an important consideration should the United States tighten its immigration laws, or at least its tech-worker visa policies.
Dilkens also suggested Windsor could offer a waterfront site without disruption of its system of parks. Part of the Detroit bid will reportedly include proposing a waterfront location for Amazon on the U.S. side of the Detroit River.
So far the details of any joint plan, including all-important incentives, are unclear, but that might change when Gilbert unveils more about the Detroit bid before Oct. 1.
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