The Department of Community and Economic Development for the City of York is planning to host a town-hall meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday to discuss the five qualified opportunity zones within city limits.

Sounds too good to be true, right? Over the past nine months, I have received calls from a number of my clients asking about a new investment opportunity being pitched to them. Whether it was a downtown York restaurant or an apartment complex in Baltimore, a primary draw of these investment opportunities was the potential tax savings. Many of these clients I would label “sophisticated investors,” so they are all well aware of various investment and tax-deferral strategies, such as 1031 like-kind exchanges. But permanent tax abatement? That almost seems too good to be true.

York has five census tracts included in the federal opportunity zone program, which is designed to spark investments in distressed communities.

Six of Harrisburg’s 14 census tracts are designated as qualified opportunity zones, opening up large swaths of real estate across the capital city for new investment.