Amazon’s First East Coast Grocery Store Opens In Franconia
Amazon opened its first Amazon Fresh grocery store on the East Coast Thursday in Franconia, Virginia, a suburb of the nation’s capital. It also announced it is hiring employees for a second store, which will open soon in Chevy Chase, Maryland. In the Festival at Manchester Lakes shopping center, at the site of a former Shoppers, t-shirted employees with the word “Fresh” on the shoulders greeted customers and explained the technology options to shoppers. Continue reading
The City of Alexandria is set to benefit from an annual pay-for-performance grant given to Amazon after an approval from the Arlington County Board. This direct financial incentive will come from a percentage of the new incremental revenue generated by the County's Transient Occupancy Tax which is tax paid on hotel rooms or other paid lodging. The approval of the performance agreement was unanimously voted upon after long hours of public hearing and questioning of Amazon Executives.
In Alexandria, the city is committed to investing up to $570 million in transportation projects which includes rail connection, transit facilities, multi-modal streets and transportation technology which will serve Amazon's headquarters. The city will benefit from new investments in the technology industry, the housing sector and the transportation sector.