Indianapolis made it to the Amazon top 20, and these experts see a good shot to win

The latest:Where would Amazon HQ2 in Indianapolis go? There are 5 potential places

Amazon delivered urgent news Thursday to Indianapolis: The retail giant finds the city at least more desirable for its second headquarters than 218 other U.S. cities that vied for the prize.

The Seattle company announced that the Indianapolis region was among 20 finalists to build a $5 billion campus that would employ 50,000 workers with average salaries of more than $100,000 a year.

The culling to the chosen few hit local leaders right in their fulfillment centers. Indianapolis is now firmly a nationwide destination for business.

“I think it speaks volumes about Indianapolis and where we’ve come as a community,” Mayor Joe Hogsett said.

More:Hey, Amazon, here's why Indy is better than those other places on your Amazon top 20 list

More:5 reasons Amazon HQ2 will land in Indy (and 2 reasons why it won't)

“It speaks to Indiana’s growing reputation on the world stage as a great state to locate and grow a business," boasted Gov. Eric Holcomb.

“This means we are on every major company’s short list from now on,” said Mike Langellier, executive director of TechPoint, an Indianapolis organization that promotes Indiana's high-tech community. “This list came down to the usual suspects, and surprise, Indy was on it.”

But after the celebrating ends, can Indianapolis win out? How does the Circle City compare with the others still standing, including neighbors Chicago; Columbus, Ohio; and Nashville, Tenn.?

Jeff Holzmann, managing director of iintoo, a New York-based investment firm, said he expected Indianapolis to be among the final four selections because Amazon has an opportunity to shape the area.

“I believe Amazon can and will go to a place where they can stake a claim and change the fabric of a region over time,” Holzmann said. “Amazon doesn’t want competition, and they are not going to New York or Boston or any big city where real-estate is tight and they would have to build vertically and the commutes are one to two hours.”

Holzmann said he thinks the biggest cities made the final 20 to give Amazon leverage with the mid-sized cities. He predicted the final four would be Indianapolis, Raleigh, N.C., Columbus and Pittsburgh.

Ralph Boyd, chairman of the Urban Land Institute in Washington D.C., which focuses on responsible use of real estate, said he also suspects Amazon wants to move somewhere it can make a large impact.

“I could see them going in a direction where they make the biggest splash, where they really transform the area,” Boyd said. “Tech companies now are in it for more than the business. They want to make a social impact, affect the culture. In a midsize city they have a better chance of that.”

Boyd and Holzmann said the lower cost of living in Indianapolis would appeal to younger workers who are more frugal even if the region lacks the outdoor amenities they also crave.

HQ2:If Amazon chooses Indianapolis, here's where it should go

More: What you need to know about Amazon's search for its new headquarters

Briggs:Attracting Amazon would be great, but building the next big company is better

Briggs:Indianapolis neighborhoods aren't ready for Amazon

Amazon’s request for bids cited four geographic requirements: proximity to a population center of 1 million; a 45-minute drive to a major airport; a major highway or arterial street within 2 miles; and direct access to mass transit, such as rail, subway or bus lines.

 “A highly educated labor pool is critical,” the Seattle-based company said, “and a strong university system is required.”

Amazon also preferred cities with “a stable and business-friendly environment … locations with the potential to attract and retain strong technical talent (and) communities that think big and creatively when considering locations and real estate options.”

Indianapolis can tout a thriving tech industry, tax- and regulation-friendly government, universities, the highway system and the airport. The city lags behind larger cities in public transportation, however, though local advocates say that can be built later.

“We are not tied to a subway or some built-in transportation infrastructure that would require a site right next to it, so in some ways that gives us some flexibility,” said TechPoint’s Langellier. “But this is good timing because Indianapolis and the region are investing in public transportation. Keep in mind that this is a 15-year strategy that evolves.”

Holzmann said Amazon could provide the impetus for transit funding.

“Finally, you have the business and financial excuse to build a mass transit system,” he said. “It would be included in any package of incentives.”

Indianapolis and Fishers are part of the Indianapolis proposal team that includes members of the private sector and is overseen by the Indy Chamber of Commerce.

Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness said he expected the plan would be refined in consultation with Amazon in the coming months.

"I'm sure we will have more robust engagement with them in the days and weeks to come," Fadness said. "There was not a lot of fluff. We wanted to make sure we were responsive to what they wanted. We did our best to meet those needs."

Hogsett expects Amazon officials may come to Indianapolis. “I don’t know what’s next,” he said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a site visit. I wouldn’t be surprised if maybe a delegation from Indianapolis might be called to Seattle.”

Details of Indianapolis’ proposal have not been publicly released. While some other cities have offered outrageous incentives, such as Stonecrest, Ga., which promised to rename the town after Amazon, and Birmingham, Ala., which said it would build giant Amazon boxes throughout downtown, Indianapolis was not believed to proffer anything so exotic.

“We tried to be imaginative and creative” but not ridiculous, Hogsett said.

Indiana State House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, said the General Assembly was ready to craft specific incentives or economic strategy to attract Amazon.

“I will also not be surprised if some legislative action has to be taken in order to facilitate some of the incentives that are being discussed right now,” Bosma said. “We’ll work closely with the administration on that and be sure that the IEDC (Indiana Economic Development Corp.) and the governor have all the tools they need to make Indiana as attractive as possible without, hopefully, giving away the store.”

Wisconsin raised eyebrows nationwide in September when it approved up to $3 billion in subsidies for Foxconn Technology Group of Taiwan, its flat-screen manufacturing plant and thousands of jobs.

“I looked a little bit at the deal Wisconsin entered into this past year,” Bosma said. “It looked like it was extremely expensive, maybe not taxpayer friendly. I know that our governor is not on that kind of a glide path, nor would I support that.”

The sites the Indianapolis team proposed have been kept secret, but Fadness said two or three options were submitted.

Hogsett said the possibilities include the former GM stamping plant on the west side, the Metropolitan Airport near 96th Street in Fishers, which has land planned for development, and the shuttered property once occupied by the old Indianapolis International Airport on the west side.

The Amazon campus of buildings is expected to total up to 8 million square feet over the next 15 years.

Indiana has been on a roll lately attracting high-tech companies. Salesforce, which has its second-largest presence after San Francisco in Indianapolis, last spring settled into the tallest building Downtown. The company also promised to add 800 new jobs in Indianapolis within five years. Money Magazine in September ranked Fishers the best place to live in the U.S., citing its cost of living and “entrepreneurial buzz.”

J.J. Thompson, chief executive officer of Carmel-based Rook Security, said Central Indiana has been drawing the attention of big-money investors looking to support companies outside of Silicon Valley.

"I literally just wrapped up another trip meeting with investors in the (San Francisco) Bay area," Thompson said. "They all consider there to be significant value in Indiana for the tax benefits and the fact that your capital goes so much further."

Thompson moved his cybersecurity firm out of San Jose, Calif., to Carmel in 2009 and has seen steady growth ever since.

Indiana, he said, is rich in talent thanks to the many high-quality universities and colleges in the state. Meanwhile, Thompson said the salaries for entry-level technology jobs in Indiana are about half of what the same workers are paid on the West Coast.

"You have the perfect blend of a talent pipeline, economic incentives and the cost of living, and associated operational expenses are significantly lower," Thompson said. "It's nice. Indiana's really doing it right."

IndyStar reporter Tony Cook contributed to this report.

Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at 317 444-6418. Follow on Twitter and Facebook.

Amazon top 20

The retail giant on Thursday announced finalists for its $5 billion second headquarters that would provide 50,000 workers with average salaries of more than $100,000 a year.

They are Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Columbus, Ohio, Dallas, Denver, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Miami, Montgomery County, Md., Nashville, Newark, New York City, Northern Virginia, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, N.C., Toronto and Washington, D.C.