(CNN) — Amazon is pausing construction on its second headquarters in northern Virginia, the company confirmed in a statement to CNN on Friday.
John Schoettler, Amazon’s real estate chief, said the company is pushing back the groundbreaking of the second phase of the sprawling new headquarters. The first phase is still under construction and expected to open in June.
“We’ve decided to shift the groundbreaking of PenPlace (the second phase of HQ2) out a bit,” Schoettler said in a statement. “Our second headquarters has always been a multi-year project, and we remain committed to Arlington, Virginia, and the greater Capital Region.”
Amazon’s search for a second headquarters kicked off in 2017, spurring a major competition as local officials across the country competed for the e-commerce giant to bring jobs and other benefits to their communities. Some 238 communities submitted bids in 2017 to be the home of Amazon’s second headquarters, with some offering major tax breaks or even to rename land “city of Amazon.
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