RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK – Amazon is is ‘late stage talks’ with several cities for HQ2, but the Triangle isn’t on the list.

So reports The Wall Street Journal.

Following up on The Washington Post report on Saturday that Amazon was looking to place HQ2 in Northern Virginia, The Journal is reporting that the Virginia is one of several sites Amazon continues to negotiate with for the $5 billion, 50,000-job project.

Other sites beyond Crystal City according to unnamed sources include:

  • Dallas
  • New York City

Talks about several locations have “cooled,” the newspaper said.

On that list is Raleigh, although Amazon has said since the 20 finalists were disclosed earlier this year that it was mulling the Triangle as a location. A final decision is expected before the end of the year.

“The ongoing talks with some local officials come as discussions appear to have cooled in some of the other 20 cities on Amazon’s shortlist, including Denver, Toronto, Atlanta, Nashville, Tenn., and Raleigh, N.C.,” The Journal said. It cited as sources “people familiar with those situations.”

On Sunday, sources told WRAL News and WRAL TechWire that the Triangle had not been told it is no longer under consideration for the HQ2 site. Nor has similar news been heard from Apple, these sources said.

The Journal report did not trigger an angry reaction from Amazon’s Mike Grella, who heads economic development. He blasted leakers for information provided to The Post, which is owned by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

Even if Amazon is in possibly final talks with more than one location, that doesn’t been the Triangle has been eliminated.

“Site selection specialists say Amazon likely is having late-stage talks with two or more cities, and has other cities on hold, in case any one deal can’t be completed,” the Journal said.

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The finalists are:

  • Atlanta
  • Austin, Texas
  • Boston
  • Chicago
  • Columbus, Ohio
  • Dallas
  • Denver
  • Indianapolis
  • Los Angeles
  • Miami
  • Montgomery County, Maryland
  • Nashville, Tennessee
  • Newark
  • New York City
  • Northern Virginia
  • Philadelphia
  • Pittsburgh
  • Raleigh-Research Triangle
  • Toronto