A new program added to the tax code by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 provides Rochester, Minnesota with new economic development opportunities.
An “Opportunity Zone” is an economically-distressed community where under certain conditions new investments may be eligible for preferential tax treatment. Areas qualify as Opportunity Zones if they have been nominated for that designation by the state and that nomination has been certified by the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury through his delegation authority to the Internal Revenue Service.
Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton identified the Minnesota Opportunity Zones approved by the federal government. Two of those are in Rochester. A portion of the Opportunity Zones overlaps within the Destination Medical Center (DMC) district in downtown Rochester.
“. . . From a world-class education comes an unparalleled workforce ready to innovate in Minnesota’s growing economy. Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith has been at the forefront of our innovation economy as chair of the board of the Destination Medical Center Corp., an ambitious public-private partnership to grow Mayo Clinic and the city of Rochester into America’s City for Health. Smith and I have also worked closely with the University of Minnesota Medical School to ensure that our world-class medical facilities and technology companies have access to the best-trained medical workforce in our nation. Together these efforts will help ensure growth and opportunity for health care, businesses and residents for decades to come.”