The Quad Cities is the place to find high-quality manufacturing, sites, people and lifestyle. Three distinct viewpoints shed light on a bi-state region with a sense of unity that transcends even the mighty Mississippi.
The release this spring of new FDI data and analysis by the Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development naturally invites further scrutiny of inflows and outflows.
Aquarabia is just one part of the Qiddiya City megaproject.
Rendering courtesy of Falcon’s Beyond
“Qiddiya. Play Life.” That’s the slogan of Qiddiya City, the oasis of sports, entertainment and culture that Saudi Arabia is constructing in the Tuwaiq mountains some 25 miles outside the nation’s capital of Riyadh. The megaproject’s website says construction at the district’s Six Flags amusement park is 59% complete, while a separate water theme park dubbed Aquarabia master-planned by an arm of Orlando-based “experiential entertainment development enterprise” Falcon’s Beyond is 61% complete. Two top-shelf golf courses have been 100% shaped. Ministry of Sport, the Australian sports business news site, reports that “a Formula 1 grade racing circuit is under construction and scheduled to take over as host of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix from 2027, while Qiddiya shapes as the likely hub of the 2034 FIFA World Cup, which Saudi Arabia is currently the only bidder for.”
Overall some 25 distinct districts are being developed for a mixed-use city the Kingdom expects to be home to some 600,000 residents eventually. Among the latest is what is being called “the world’s first mixed-use gaming and esports district,” including four dedicated esports venues projected to have a combined seating capacity of 73,000 for tournaments. A December 2023 announcement said the district aims to be a permanent base for up to 25 elite esports clubs and house the regional headquarters “of over 30 prominent video game companies.” See past Site Selection coverage of how esports and video games are driving new physical project activity and creating career fields that exist in the real universe as well as the metaverse.
The Houston-based energy company employs around 9,000 people and serves more than 7 million customers in six states with electric and natural gas energy. But that’s just for starters.
Sweden-based EQT AB announced in January that its EQT Infrastructure VI is partnering with data center provider EdgeConneX to expand global data center capacity, focusing on serving hyperscale customers.
Photo courtesy of EQT AB
Contrary to accepted wisdom about data centers not creating jobs, a CBRE brief released last week instead explores their economic ripple effects. The brief cites PwC data showing that data-center-related jobs increased by 20% nationwide to 3.5 million between 2017 and 2021. “On a local and state level, sales and property tax revenues are being fortified by data center growth,” CBRE states, illustrating the impact in Virginia, Nebraska and Ohio in particular. Among other observations, “CBRE estimates that annual property taxes from a data center facility in Nebraska can be 110 times greater than those from agricultural land.”
Look to the July issue of Site Selection for exclusive analysis by Timmons Group Economic Development Practice Leader Joe Hines examining how hyperscale data center users may seek to fulfill their power and water needs.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
The Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge in South Nyack, New York
Photo courtesy of Holcim
The Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge in South Nyack, New York spans 3.1 miles across the Hudson River. Built with Holcim high-performance concrete, the structure fully opened to traffic in 2018, connecting Rockland and Westchester counties. “Located less than 20 miles north of New York City, the cable-stayed span crosses one of the widest parts of the Hudson River and is the longest bridge in New York State,” says the bridge’s home page, noting that it also features the longest shared bicycle/pedestrian path on a bridge in the nation.
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