OZ MAGAZINE 2022 Top 25 Influencers issue 2.2 | Page 39

TOP 25 ATTORNEYS
39

BRETT SIGLIN

JENNINGS , STROUSS & SALMON , PLC

Brett Siglin focuses his practice on a broad range of business law matters involving joint venture structuring , private placement offerings , bond financing , syndication of equity , contract negotiation , securities regulation and compliance , and real estate acquisition and development . He primarily represents developers , managers , operators , investors , fund sponsors , and other businesses . Siglin is adept at structuring tax-advantaged real estate transactions , including deals utilizing federal and state tax credits , the Opportunity Zone incentive , and tax-exempt bond financing . For four years before entering private practice , he served as an attorney-advisor for the U . S . Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington , D . C .

WHAT NEW TRENDS ARE YOU SEEING IN THE OPPORTUNITY ZONE INDUSTRY ?
More investors are taking advantage of the benefits derived from the Opportunity Zone incentive . Yet , there are still potentially hundreds of billions of untapped equity derived from capital gains that will be eligible to invest in Qualified Opportunity Funds in the coming years . Potential investors need to know that even if they didn ’ t commit by the end of 2021 , they could still reap the valuable exclusion benefits on the built-in appreciation of their investments so long as they invest in a fund prior to December 31 , 2026 , and stay invested for ten years .

TIMOTHY WACHTER

KNOX MCLAUGHLIN GORNALL & SENNETT , P . C .

As a member of the Governmental , Public Finance , and Business groups , and as lead for Knox Law Public Strategies , Timothy Wachter advises clients on complex legal , regulatory , and Opportunity Zone matters . He led the nationally recognized effort in Erie to coordinate stakeholders on the potential of OZ and the development of the Flagship OZ , and was the lead developer for the Flagship Opportunity Zone Development Company . Wachter was invited by the White House Office of Public Liaison to participate in their first OZ Conference and has been engaged to provide OZ development advice throughout Pennsylvania by the PA Senate Republican Caucus .

WHAT NEW TRENDS ARE YOU SEEING IN THE OPPORTUNITY ZONE INDUSTRY ?
Many of the OZ investments have been in projects that would have happened anyway . Now , investors are looking at impact investments . I am seeing more OZ investors looking for investment opportunities that are not only economically viable , but also socially impactful . The communities that will see the most impactful investments are those that have been able to provide nontraditional project owners with access to professional support to help them bring their projects to the point of being not only shovel ready , but also investor ready .
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