Sedgwick County Poised to Become Federal Opportunity Zone, Targeting Major Investment in Housing and Agriculture – Julesburg Advocate

Rhonda Graham, Sedgwick County’s Community and Economic Development Director, is driving efforts to secure the county’s selection for the federal Opportunity Zone (OZ) program, following a recent regional meeting that included officials from the northeastern side of Colorado down to Lamar. The entire county is expected to be included, which is significant as Sedgwick County is one of the few counties in the region that constitutes a single census tract, and there was “no opposition for Sedgwick County in its entirety” to be nominated for the program.12

The federal government has recently released new census tracts for every state, making 360 in Colorado available for the OZ designation. The Governor must narrow this list down to 90 by mid-September. The designation is expected to bring “significant changes” that benefit rural communities, particularly by offering substantial tax benefits to investors. Rural investors are slated to receive a 30% step-up in their return on their offset, with even more benefits available for areas deemed “severely distressed.”

Key areas of focus for local investment include:

Housing: A major topic of discussion was utilizing the Opportunity Zone for housing projects, inspired by successful development corporations that used the OZ for housing down in the Southeast. Combining the OZ status with potential “fast track funding” is expected to have a huge impact on the county.
Agriculture: Federal officials are still determining exactly how the Opportunity Zone can benefit agriculture, but they intend to include it. Examples of investments being explored include:
Dairy milking facilities
Poultry slaughter and egg production
Beef feedlots and packing houses
Grain milling
Sheep shearing
Fish farms, combinement, and production
The official start date for the program is January 1, 2027, with investment periods generally running seven or ten years. The regional group is also discussing implications for renewable energy projects, like wind farms, noting that major movement is not anticipated until 2027 anyway.