Amazon announced Thursday it’s seeking a second North American headquarters, and Connecticut wants to throw its name in the hat.
According to the company, they would hire up to 50,000 new full-time employees over the next 15 years, with an average pay of more than $100,000 a year.
Officials in the state are jumping at the opportunity, saying the state has to offer everything needed in a headquarters location.
Amazon’s current headquarters is in Seattle, but the company is quickly expanding and running out of room.
The company says they plan to stay there, saying the new space would be a "full equal" to that.
They plan to spend $5 billion to build the second headquarters.
Amazon wants to be near a metropolitan area with more than a million people, be within 45 minutes of an international airport, have direct access to mass transit, and be able to expand the headquarters to as much as 8-million square feet in the next decade.
The company already has facilities in Windsor and Wallingofrd, and is planning to add another one in North Haven.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Gov. Dannel Malloy says, “Situated between New York and Boston, home to great schools and world class universities, and boasting a high quality of life, Connecticut would be a great home for a second Amazon headquarters. We are a proven partner with Amazon, evidenced by their growing footprint in the state, and it would be very exciting to see that partnership grow, and the fact is, Connecticut has a growing pool of top tech talent, which is reflected in the continued success of other tech companies in Fairfield County and beyond."
It comes after Connecticut took a few hits with General Electric and Aetna pulling their headquarters out of the state.
Still officials, including Hartford's mayor, plan to make a pitch to Amazon.