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Uber's Dallas office could bring 3,000 jobs downtown, be company's biggest hub outside San Francisco

To woo the transportation giant, Dallas County leaders plan to offer Uber a total of about $2.6 million in tax breaks. They'll vote on the tax abatement agreement on Aug. 20.

Editor's note at 7:23 p.m.: This story has been updated throughout.

Uber could soon open a major office in Dallas and turn the city into its largest corporate hub outside of its San Francisco headquarters, according to city and county documents.

The transportation giant plans to spend about $125 million on its office buildout, create 3,000 full-time jobs and pay employees an average salary of at least $100,000, according to the agenda for the Dallas County Commissioners Court meeting on Aug. 20.

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Uber has evaluated sites across the country and plans to move into two office buildings at the edge of Deep Ellum and downtown, the agenda says. The office would include engineers, finance executives, salespeople and other roles across Uber's business.

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Uber looked at sites in Arizona and Dallas for the office, according to the agenda for the Dallas City Council meeting on Aug. 14.

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Uber would not confirm whether it has decided on Dallas.

"Uber is evaluating adding a significant number of jobs in Dallas and investing directly in the community," Uber spokesman Travis Considine said in a statement. "Our team is currently discussing the opportunity with state and local leaders, and we hope to make a decision by the fall."

Officials will vote on economic incentives for the project this month. Uber could receive about $3.3 million in tax breaks from the city and county and up to $8.6 million in economic development grants from the city.

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The city of Dallas plans to offer Uber about $746,000 in tax breaks through a 50% tax abatement over five years. The Dallas City Council is expected to vote Wednesday on its economic incentive package.

Dallas County plans to offer Uber a total of about $2.6 million in tax breaks. If county commissioners approve the deal, Uber would get a 50% tax abatement on real property and a 90% tax abatement on business personal property over 10 years. Dallas County would collect about $2.1 million from Uber during that time.

Uber must create at least 2,500 new jobs by Jan. 1, 2023, and a total of 3,000 or more new jobs by Jan. 1, 2025, to receive the tax breaks from Dallas County.

Through a spokesperson, the governor's office declined to say whether the state has offered Uber economic incentives.

Uber told The Dallas Morning News in May that Dallas was a leading contender for a major corporate campus. At the time, Uber said it was focused on space at The Epic, an 8-acre development near downtown Dallas.

The company plans to spend $25 million on business personal property and another $100 million to decorate and finish out the building, according to the agenda for the Dallas County Commissioners Court meeting.

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson said in a statement that he is "thrilled that Dallas is a finalist for the company's planned expansion." He said the city is "offering a competitive, creative incentive package."

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"I am confident that Dallas is the ideal city to foster Uber's future growth," he said.

Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said Uber's expansion in Dallas would inspire other companies, especially technology and transportation companies, to give the city a closer look. He said Uber's employees would stimulate the economy in and around downtown Dallas, too.

"They'll buy homes. They'll eat here. They'll shop here. They'll go to the dry cleaner's and the movies here," he said. "The spending goes well beyond the tiny number of what we get or don't get on property taxes."

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Uber would be one of the largest corporate expansions in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in at least the last decade. It would bring nearly as many new jobs as Toyota North America, which pledged to create at least 3,650 when it moved its headquarters from California to Plano.

Dallas has been a large market for Uber. It was the first Texas city to get Uber's ride-hailing service in 2012. Uber chose the region as the testing ground for its urban air taxi service, Uber Air, and signed an up to $1.5 million contract with Dallas Area Rapid Transit in March to provide free and discounted rides to light-rail and bus stations. Uber Eats delivers food in Dallas, and Uber-owned Jump has rental scooters around town.

Uber has about 140 employees in Texas. Most are based in its downtown Austin office. It has about a dozen employees in a small office in Dallas' West End.

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Read the Dallas County briefing and tax abatement request: