Any development Amazon did would be in KOZ (Keystone Opportunity Zones) which have existing tax abatements on most forms of taxes. Comcast was the initiator and argued for those tax incentives, so you know they've got to be pretty good. That means no fighting with state or local legislatures as the tax incentives are in place. Amazon would automatically qualify since they would be coming in from out of state.
Philadelphia is an hour by train to Newark Airport, which does non-stops to Beijing. It's not as ideal as it being in the local airport, but it's also not that far away.
The Navy Yard literally ticks every box of their requirements:
30 Mile proximity to population center: It's IN the city.
45 Minute proximity to international airport: It's about 15 minutes drive from the airport, or you can take mass transit.
1-2 Miles from Major highways: It sits basically ON I-95
Close to Major arterial roads: Within 10 minutes of 295, NJ Turnpike, I-76
Access to mass transit at site: Bus routes to site, subway stop a 5 minute shuttle ride from site
500,000 sqft of development space: Currently prepped for 4,000,000 sqft of office development, shovel ready
Up to 8,000,000 Sq Ft of Development space beyond 2027: 13.5 Million square feet of space at full build out.
Literally every box ticked, in a tax haven. The city could justify a BSL expansion to the Navy Yard with this sort of development, so they could throw that in as a deal sweetener.
There is also the Schuylkill Yards district in planning which would involve capping the train yard next to 30th street station. Both Schuylkill Yards and the Navy Yard have master plans in place, and the Navy Yard is ready for this basically day one. Both are Keystone Opportunity Zones and have abatements on almost all state and local taxes.
