HUD Secretary Turner praises Omaha project and says Opportunity Zones are now permanent

HUD Secretary Turner praised Omaha’s mixed-use redevelopment during a visit to the city, saying the federal agency’s role is to "spur revitalization and to bring new life into communities across America" and that Opportunity Zones will continue to be a tool for long-term investment.

"The Opportunity Zone policy has now been made permanent," Turner said, describing Opportunity Zones as a vehicle that channels capital gains into Qualified Opportunity Funds that invest in local housing and businesses. Turner cited widely used impact figures during his remarks, saying the program has produced "400,000 new housing units, a $100,000,000,000 of investment, [and] 1,000,000 people lifted out of poverty," and framed Opportunity Zones as "patient capital" when investors hold projects for 10 years.

The secretary also highlighted a HUD report of regulatory best practices intended to reduce costs and speed construction. "We just published our best practices, our regulatory best practices," Turner said, urging local officials to "take inventory of the regulatory environment" and remove duplicative requirements that delay building.

Why it matters: Turner cast Omaha’s project as a model that could be replicated in other cities and regions. He said HUD’s role is primarily facilitative — sharing examples and connecting local leaders — and that permanent Opportunity Zone status gives localities and investors a longer runway to pursue community development projects.

Local officials echoed that framing. Mayor Ewing described the neighborhood’s turnaround from earlier years of violence to a mixed-use development serving residents and entrepreneurs, and Governor Merrill called the Omaha example a ‘‘full circle moment’’ and a generational investment.

What’s next: Speakers encouraged continued collaboration among federal, state and city leaders and private partners. Turner said HUD will continue to showcase local successes and share regulatory guidance; local leaders said they will pursue zoning and code reviews and press partners to scale similar projects.

The event closed with a brief question-and-answer period in which officials reiterated that Opportunity Zones will remain a tool for local revitalization and that HUD will connect other cities to Omaha’s leaders to share lessons learned.