Amazon is bringing drone delivery to this California cowboy town

On Jun 20, 2022

LOCKEFORD, Calif. — Six months ago, Amazon contacted local authorities in this rural town to let them know it planned to launch its long-awaited drone delivery service here.

But as of last week — when Amazon made the news public — many of the residents of unincorporated Lockeford, with its vineyards, fruit stands, and ranches, still didn’t know about the plan.

An 82-year-old woman who lives directly across the street from the still under construction drone facility with her dog, horse, two ponies, and small herd of goats said no one had mentioned Amazon’s plans to her. The same went for two brothers busy converting the neighboring winery they recently purchased into a marijuana farm.

A man at a local archery shop commented jokingly, “Target practice!” when he found out.

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When Amazon announced last week that it would begin delivering packages via drones for the first time in the United States, the news took many residents of Lockeford by surprise. Amazon often embarks on its projects covertly, using code names and negotiating tax subsidies in secret, whether building data centers, corporate headquarters, or new fulfillment centers. But the big reveal sometimes comes as a shock to locals, triggering fights between the tech giant and the communities it aims to court.

In recent years, a Denver suburb, an island community on New York’s Canadian border and a small town in Massachusetts have all rallied to stop development by Amazon after the news became public. In 2018, after a hush-hush process to select New York City as one of its second headquarters sites, it nixed the plan due to major pushback. (Amazon is in the process of building its so-called HQ2 in Arlington, VA)

The team that chose Lockeford liked it because of its weather, rural topography, access to the highway and existing customer base, a former Amazon employee who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of concern for retaliation told The Washington Post. But the team also thought it was a good choice because there wouldn’t be too much red tape.

It “felt sort of cowboy and do what you will out there,” the person said.

The company said it started reaching out last week to locals within a four mile radius of the site to find out who is interested in trying the program. Those who sign up will be able to choose from a selection of items under five pounds being stored at a small nearby warehouse. The drones, which are 6.5 feet wide and almost 4 feet tall, are supposed to drop the packages on a predetermined spot from a height of about four feet.

There were some caveats: San Joaquin County, which houses Lockeford, is still processing its permits, and the company still needs to get sign off from the Federal Aviation Administration.

Google reaped millions in tax breaks as it secretly expanded its real estate footprint across the U.S.

But not all residents are ready to lay out the welcome…