34 OPPORTUNITY ZONE MAGAZINE | VOLUME 2 • ISSUE 1
STRATEGIES HOW STATES AND CITIES CAN ATTRACT OZ
INVESTMENTS FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
By Mike Landes
The importance of developing a community prospectus , creating public / private partnerships and connecting with local investors .
How do we incorporate Opportunity Zones into our
development strategy ?” That ’ s a question on the minds of regional and municipal economic developers all over the country as America looks for avenues for recovery in the midst of the Covid-19 recession . Ever since Congress finalized rules for the OZ Program in January 2020 , OZ investment has grown by leaps and bounds , potentially reaching as much as $ 75 billion , per the White House Council of Economic Advisors . However , the question of how those investments have impacted communities remains tied to how effective the OZ incentive has been to spur business and job growth .
It ’ s well known that the OZ incentive works for real estate investment . The problem , from the perspective of public servants , is that real estate investments don ’ t make the same impact on local economies as do new businesses bringing jobs to the
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