LINCOLN PARK — With two new Amazon pickup stores in Lincoln Park, can the internet sale giant's ballyhooed second headquarters be far behind?

Amazon stores offering free pickup of new items and drop-off of returned items have opened at 2728 N. Clark St. and near the DePaul University campus at 1001 W. Webster Ave.

Amazon announced plans for the new Clark Street store adjacent to the Banana Republic Factory outlet this summer. Customers will be able to arrange to pick up and return items there, and Amazon Prime customers can arrange next-day delivery and even same-day delivery on some items.

It's similar to other Amazon outlets previously opened at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Illinois at Chicago, but it's the first in the state to be separate from a college campus. Even so, it is making it a point to offer Prime Student deals as well.

Another has opened ahead of schedule at 1001 W. Webster Ave. near DePaul.

The stores are distinct from Amazon's bookstore in Lakeview, which specializes in books stocked on site, not the full range of goods the internet shopping giant deals in for pickup on internet orders.

The stores offer secure package pickup in an area that has suffered a recent rash of package thefts.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has been lobbying hard for Amazon to open its announced second headquarters in Chicago, and the city made a formal pitch to the company this week.

The Lincoln Yards development in the North Branch Industrial Corridor has been mentioned as a possible site of the new Amazon headquarters, as well as the Old Main Post Office, the former site of Michael Reese Hospital and even McKinley Park.