Internet giant Amazon is getting into all kinds of markets. RVers have been closely watching the company’s move to become an internet satellite provider through Project Kuiper. Now Amazon is getting into the RV park business. Well, sort of. Hermiston, Oregon, will soon become the home of a new Amazon RV park.
Amazon RV park to benefit both the company, and the community
Company offspring Amazon Web Services wants to build a huge data center near Hermiston. While under construction, plenty of workers will need a place to stay. Amazon recognizes that a lot of the temporary construction workers move from job site to job site in RVs. Why not build an RV park as a spot for these folks to stay during the build?
Amazon’s forte isn’t the construction business, so the company approached Hermiston city officials and made them an offer they couldn’t refuse. “Here,” says Amazon. “We’ll give you $8 million, you build us an RV park on city land on or near the Eastern Oregon Trade & Event Center. Build 200 RV sites, you can keep 100 of them for yourself, and reserve the other half for us to rent from you.” Nah, we don’t think they used those exact words, but that’s what it boiled down to.
On Monday, May 11, the city council voted 6 to 1 to take the $8 million and run. While officially speaking, “The [other 100] remaining spaces will be available for events,” Assistant City Manager Mark Morgan told us the city has plans to rent those spaces out to RVers visiting the city at any time, not just during events.
Morgan told us that the city hopes to have the new “Amazon RV park” completed by the end of 2026. Amazon will dole out the $8 million in four payments through the construction period.
