Amazon's Second Headquarters Search

Respected California executive Ricardo Noguera has nearly three decades of experience in community-focused public administration positions. Embracing diversity, Ricardo Noguera has worked within multiethnic municipal departments that fully reflect the communities they serve. 

When Seattle-based company Amazon launched a search for a second headquarters in 2017, Mr. Noguera worked as the city of Tacoma’s economic development director to attract the attention of the technology conglomerate. As reported in GeekWire, Mr. Noguera’s office completed the proposal of a downtown Tacoma location adjacent to the University of Washington campus. 

The city of Tacoma, featuring light rail and several universities and research institutions within a compact footprint, is distinguished by a diverse, highly educated labor pool. Tacoma also offers a dynamic housing situation, with 2,000 downtown housing units to be added in the next few years. The proposed Amazon site, featuring views of Commencement Bay, had room for up to 400,000 square feet of office space. 

Ultimately, the highly competitive nationwide search resulted in Amazon’s selection of Crystal City, Virginia, and Queens, New York, as locations for a split second headquarters. However, with its proximity to Seattle, Tacoma still has a strong presence in the Amazon business ecosystem.

What is the Daniel Rose Fellowship?

Ricardo Noguera, a graduate of the University of California Berkeley’s City and Regional Planning program, serves as a business development executive at AVENU where he helps maximize revenues for cities and counties across Southern California. In addition to his professional work, Ricardo Noguera has also engaged with professional organizations, including the Urban Land Institute (ULI), where he was a Daniel Rose Fellow. 

ULI, a nonprofit research and education organization, advocates for the responsible use of land and progressive development practices. The organization, which was founded in 1936, currently includes over 40,000 members and maintains offices in London, Washington, D.C., Hong Kong, and Frankfurt. ULI also supports the future of responsible land use efforts through educational programs that range from real estate entrepreneur programs and online courses to certificates and the Daniel Rose Fellowship.

A yearlong program, the Daniel Rose Fellowship provides leadership training and professional development through a focus on public/private collaboration, problem solving, and peer-to-peer learning. Each year, ULI invites four mayors of American cities to participate in the program who, in turn, select three department heads to serve as fellows. Once selected for the program, fellows have the opportunity to participate in the a Fall and Spring meeting, a study tour of another city and each of the four fellowship cities, as well as a working retreat.