THIS WEEK ... 

The original Opportunity Zone program drove more than $100B into real estate and business investment, but it also fueled gentrification, lacked guardrails and faced political blowback.

Now, under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, OZs are back. They’re now permanent. They’re tougher. And they’re aimed squarely at rural America.

On this week’s First Draft Live, we’re joined by Steve Glickman — co-author of the original OZ program and CEO of Statt — to break down the high-stakes reboot. The new rules slash eligibility, restricting it more tightly to lower-income tracts and doubling rural incentives. But the timeline will likely create a “dead zone” until 2027 that could freeze deals.

Will OZ 2.0 fix what 1.0 missed — or chill investor appetite when CRE needs it most?

We’ll get into who’s poised to win, how governors will redraw the map and why data centers, logistics parks and housing developers are watching the “dead zone” clock.

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Every Friday at 12:30 p.m. ET, we go live with industry experts for a sharp, timely conversation on the week’s most impactful topic — inspired by our daily newsletter, The First Draft. Whether it’s CRE capital trends, policy changes, or sector-specific activity, we break down what it means for your business right now.

We’ve hosted some of the industry's top voices — and there's more to come. Bring your questions, join the conversation, or catch the replay within 24 hours if you can't attend live.

Interested in speaking? Contact Director of Global Production Elizabeth Baker at liz.baker@bisnow.com.