Dear Amazon: You Should Choose Flint, And Here’s Why [OPINION]

We're so much more than the water crisis, and the people of this area deserve a boost. 

Dear Amazon:

We heard that you're planning to build a second headquarters location, bringing 50,000 jobs and pretty hefty tax incentives to whichever city wins the bid.

I'd like to tell you why Flint, Michigan would be a great choice for you to consider.

I'm sure you're thinking, "Flint? Really?"  In your head, you're picturing the water crisis, blighted homes and crime. But we're so much more than that.

Looks a bit different than you've pictured, no? Don't get me wrong, there's still a LOT of areas we can improve on. The people of this city need a boost - all 100,000 residents. And while they don't all need a job from you, bringing the headquarters here would provide the industry and morale boost that this city needs.

We're also an hour from Detroit - a lot of people from this area commute down there for work; no doubt that people from Detroit would commute up here. We have a booming downtown area with great restaurants, bars, shops, and a beautiful Farmer's Market. What's not to love about it?

Back in the early 1900's, people began moving to Flint in droves after Buick and Chevrolet built plants along the Flint River. By the 1960's, our population was well over 200,000 people...and then the recession of the 1980's happened. Thousands lost their jobs at the GM plants, which then closed in the 90's and 2000's, and Flint became the ghost town that you see in the media.

We're the ultimate comeback kids, but we need a big boost. And you could provide that.

We were declared an "All American City" in the 1950's, and I can't think of a city that deserves a better opportunity to get back to that glory than Flint. We deserve it. People here are positive, hard-working, and those that have stayed (and moved here, including me) are committed to making this a better place.

We have so many AMAZING events - Back to the Bricks, the Crim Festival of Races, the CANUSA games, and more. As somebody who has lived in five other cities in two other states, big and small, I can tell you this: there is ALWAYS something going here. We have our own OHL hockey team, the Flint Firebirds. They've been great for our area - but you know what would be greater? 50,000 jobs.

And finally, we have Coney dogs. FLINT STYLE. Not those fake Detroit coneys that are nothing but glorified chili dogs. Ground beef goodness on top of a Koegel Vienna (don't EVER ask for an Oscar Meyer here), topped with mustard and onions. It's a Flint staple, and totally worth you building a $5 billion headquarters here. In fact, we'll throw in free Coneys for a year. How can you pass that up?

*Side note - anybody willing to throw in free Coneys for a year?*

We get it - it's a long-shot. But if you don't play, you can't win. So we're playing, and ready to win the game.

Thanks for the consideration!