Opportunity Zones: Investing [With] Distressed Communities
Updated: Jul 10, 2018
History Of The Program
The Opportunity Zones program was established by Congress in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as an innovative approach to spurring long-term private sector investments in low-income urban and rural communities nationwide. Learn more about this bipartisan program across the U.S.
Resources & Details
The following resources outline more information about Designated Opportunity Zones in underinvested (disinherited) communities across the U.S.
Additional resources, maps, and zones are defined here.
As outlined in a recent article in CNN, The 2017 Distressed Communities Index of the Economic Innovation Group indicates:
Nationally, the demand for capital is clear. More than 50 million Americans live in places with high rates of poverty and unemployment. Meanwhile, from 2010-14, just five metro areas produced as many new businesses as the rest of the country combined.
A few short thoughts (Nate)
This can be a tremendous opportunity for people from many walks of life to work together (integrated neighboring networks and associations) across all the lines that too often limit our full potential.
Local residents at the margins (those living in disinvested urban and rural communities) know the community best and have brilliant ideas, knowledge, and gifts to contribute to society.
We need local voices to guide the process to be sure that communities and residents are honored with dignity and empowered as decision-makers.
Local voices need access to opportunity - not only with the skills to "go fishing," but to access and own "the lakefront."
Doing "for" often fails. Doing "with" can change the world as we all learn from one another in the process of mutual transformation. We need one another.
#opportunityzones #dignity #empowerment #neighborhoods #communitydevelopment #economicdevelopment #housing #jobs #with