“The White House’s new executive order for agencies to prioritize O.Z.s is a positive first step to transform more communities into walkable, equitable and thriving places and repair the mistakes of the 20th century that led to sprawl and disinvestment,” said Christopher Cotes, director of LOCUS, a program of Small Growth America. “Most importantly, this new council must encourage greater transparency to ensure any federal investment in O.Z.s achieves equitable development outcomes that are good for both residents and businesses.”On paper, the Opportunity Zones plan appears to be an excellent concept and major corporations have an opportunity to invest in distressed communities and get a break on their taxes.These Opportunity Zones were created a 3 year ago under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, but a year later there are still no established rules to implement the program.All 50 states, the District of Columbia and five U.S. territories are able to participate in the Opportunity Zones initiative. State governors are responsible for nominating low-income communities based on qualified census tracts, and the U.S. Department of the Treasury will certify Opportunity Zones within 30 days of receiving nominations.   

  Presently, the major question is, how will the African-American community benefit from Opportunity Zones? To begin, very few African Americans are aware of or have information about Opportunity Zones, and many consumer advocates warn that the investments may not reach distressed areas. Many of these projects will be public-private partnerships, and many companies refuse to invest money in a poor community, where they don’t see them getting a return on their investment. But, at the executive order signing, different prominent Blacks spoke in favor of the project. 

  Pastor Donte’ Hickman of the Southern Baptist Church, in partnership with other faith-based stakeholders’ institutions, has created the East Baltimore Revitalization Plan, addressing development needs of 100 acres, approved and adapted by the City Planning Development of Baltimore.

   “Our area has been federally designated as an Opportunity Zone, and this bipartisan legislation can leverage public and private funding toward community revitalization,” said Hickman. After Hickman gave his remarks, Johnson of BET spoke. Johnson is also a big supporter of Opportunity Zones.“What this proves is the efficacy, Mr. President, of a program that allows capital to flow to places where people are seeking out opportunity. And I am convinced that [the tax incentives] to business people will cause people to invest money where before they saw risk, now they see opportunity,” Johnson said. 

  It is too early to make an informed opinion on this Opportunity Zone project. There are different numbers from different leaders on the amount of money the government is willing to invest — some say $1.3 billion and others say $2.2 billion. But both numbers are substantial. — (NNPA)