New Amazon facility in Tijuana opens amid praise and controversy
Both authorities and business sector representatives praised the new investment, while residents of the Nueva Esperanza neighborhood, located in front of the new Amazon warehouse, still have doubts about what this would mean for them
The photos quickly went viral. A new 344,000-square-foot Amazon fulfillment center in Tijuana amid a settlement, where many houses are built with wood scraps, tarps, and cardboard.
The images, first shared by photographer Omar Martínez, opened the debate due to the clear contrast. Some people on social media called them a display of capitalism and globalization.
In Tijuana, both authorities and business sector representatives praised the new investment entering the city, while residents of the Nueva Esperanza neighborhood, located in front of the new Amazon warehouse, still have doubts about what this would mean for them.
Amazon is scheduled to start operations Tijuana in what will be its eleventh distribution center in Mexico on September 22, said Arlene Herrera, spokeswoman for Amazon Mexico. At least 250 jobs will be created at this facility, she added.
“The arrival of Amazon to Tijuana, contributes to the ongoing economic recovery in various productive sectors, achieving stability in employment,” reads a press release by the City of Tijuana.
The facility is located in the Real Estate Management and Services Group (RMSG) industrial park, next to the vía rápida (expressway) Alamar.
An average of 21 million dollars was invested in the construction of this facility, according to city officials. Herrera, could not confirm that figure, citing confidentiality matters.
Tijuana Mayor, Karla Ruiz, whose term ends in three weeks, is confident that the arrival of this company will trigger development in the surrounding area. “If you change an environment, it transforms the surrounding area”, she said.
Residents of the Nueva Esperanza neighborhood hope that those changes will bring benefits to the area.
Pedro Arana has lived in this neighborhood for over 35 years. His house is right across the new facility, on an unpaved street, where you can clearly see the big Amazon logo.
“There’s a lot of poor families here, where we live there are not many resources to build and there are many people who come from out of state,” described Arana, who sells cheese for a living.
He admits that like many of his neighbors, he had no idea what Amazon was.
On the one hand, he hopes that the arrival of the company will help improve the conditions for the residents around the area, but in the other hand, he fears that they could be forced to relocate.
Although no authority has notified them that would be the case, it is a concern that has been discussed among neighbors, said María Mendoza, who has lived in the area for over 30 years. “We are here because we need a place to live,” she said. “We just don’t want this to work against us,” she added.
Secretary of Economic Development in Tijuana, Gabriel Camarena said no one would be displaced. “Either there is complete transformation, or they will be offered other and more dignified living options,” he said.
Amazon is not the only company set up in the area. There are at least five other industrial facilities nearby, including one bigger (538,000 square-foot) than Amazon, Camarena said.
Tijuana president of the Business Coordinating Council (CCE), Francisco Rubio, agreed that “it is always positive that first-world companies continue to set up in our city”.
General Director of Operations in Amazon Mexico, Diego Méndez said in a late June press release that “at Amazon Mexico, we feel great responsibility towards the communities where we operate, and we are pleased to be able to offer hundreds of job opportunities in Tijuana”.
The new distribution center aims to offer same-day deliveries in Tijuana, and next-day deliveries to cities like Mexicali, Tecate, Ensenada and Rosarito.
Herrera with Amazon said the distribution center in Tijuana will only serve the Mexican market.
About five miles to the north, Amazon built a 3.4 million-square-foot facility in Otay Mesa, which is expected to provide up to 1,500 jobs.
Between the Tijuana and Otay Mesa facilities, construction is underway for a second port-of-entry in Otay Mesa, which would be used by both vehicles and commercial trucks.
Ph.D. in Cultural Studies and professor at the Autonomous University of Baja California, Melina Amao, reflects on the images that went viral. “What is striking is the contrast of realities that can be seen in the photos, but this is nothing new.”
She said that while it is clear that the warehouse was built in a place with many needs, the images show other issues that need to be addressed.
“It begs the question, what is being done for all the other pending social issues,” she said. “What it highlights is the inequality.”
Freelancer Yolanda Morales contributed to this story.
A high-ranking member of an Arellano Félix Organization remnant cell was gunned down near UTC. Then a man who Mexican authorities say is a reputed leader was shot in Chula Vista.
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