Mayor Suarez & HUD Secretary Turner on the Power of Opportunity Zones

On April 11, 2025, the City of Miami’s Economic Innovation and Development Department held its highly anticipated Opportunity Zone Summit at the Frost Museum of Science. Keith Carswell, Director of Economic Innovation & Development, opened the event by introducing Mayor Francis X. Suarez, who then welcomed Scott Turner, the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, for a fireside chat.

Miami Mayor Francis X. Suarez opened the Summit with a heartfelt reflection on the recent passing of his friend, Manolo Reyes, emphasizing the urgency of making every day count. Turning to policy, he recalled a pivotal moment in Miami’s revitalization efforts—a visit to the Overtown Youth Center alongside Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott—as proof of what can be achieved through collaboration, even in a divided political climate.

“Amid the partisanship, Opportunity Zones have shown us what works,” Suarez said.

The mayor also spotlighted Miami’s record-breaking progress in public safety and economic growth: “The most important number for any city is its homicide rate.” Under Suarez’s leadership, Miami recorded 27 homicides last year—and is now on track for its safest year ever.

“This milestone isn’t just about crime stats,” he noted. “It’s the result of an ecosystem with the lowest unemployment, highest wage growth, lowest taxes, and highest reserves in America.”

Miami Local captured key insights and exclusive content from Mayor Francis X. Suarez’s conversation with HUD Secretary Scott Turner at the 2025 Opportunity Zone Summit, highlighting how Opportunity Zones are shaping Miami’s future.

Fireside Chat: The Power of Opportunity Zones

Mayor Suarez:
“Mr. Secretary, what motivated you to lead the Opportunity and Revitalization Council?”

Secretary Turner:

“It wasn’t about the position, but the purpose. President Trump back then was asking, along with Senator Tim Scott, our dear friend, what can be done for the forgotten communities across America? What how can we help these communities to be revitalized again? And that word revitalized means to bring new life. The spirit of the law is economic development and community development. So, yes, to bring investment, yes, to bring the economy up, yes, to bring new jobs and new growth and new housing. But at the same time, development, the community, develop people, develop families. And so that did it for me, because that’s purpose.”

Mayor Suarez:
“What goals did you set beyond economic incentives?”

Secretary Turner:

“And so our goal, my goal personally, number one was not only for it to be successful, but for it to be impactful, for it to have long term sustainability, for it to create generational impact, which the mayor alluded to earlier. And not just to have an impact economically, but have an impact in the lives of people. And so the other thing that I wanted to get accomplished, and we have a tremendous team then at HUD and even now, is to go to as many places as I could to be with the people, to go on a tour. I went to over 70 cities across our country, urban, tribal and rural, in about 10 or 11 months. We did over 250 convenings around the country to listen to the stakeholders, community leaders, faith leaders, education leaders, entrepreneurs, elected officials, to come to the table at one time to discuss what is the issue in the city? Why are we seeing blight? Why are we seeing poverty? But before we left the table, we said, okay, what is the strategy for long term sustainability?”

Housing Strategies

Mayor Suarez:
“What strategies are you pursuing to boost housing affordability in a city like Miami?”

Secretary Turner:

“Right now we do have a housing affordability crisis in our country, not only here in Miami, which kind of has a different issue, but across our country. Generally speaking, housing is just too hot. We need about 7 million units of housing in our country, multifamily, single family, manufactured housing, condos in order to provide for the people of America, in particularly the middle of America, hardworking families. Well, the first thing we did was say we’re going to attack the regulatory environment and tear down burdensome regulations that create so much bureaucracy and red tape that keep developers, that keep private investors from developing homes, both workforce affordable. And so that rule was affirmatively furthering fair housing, known as AFFH, which we tore down because Washington should not be mandating how Miami zones this neighborhood. You understand your people, you understand your needs, they’re unique.”

Mayor Suarez:
“What was your biggest takeaway from your national tour across 70 cities?”

Secretary Turner:

“One of the biggest issues that came up was the amount of time it took to process, and particularly multifamily. At HUD, we effectuated over 200 policy actions across the agencies to make the Opportunity Zone process better. We put the most senior underwriters on these processes to expedite it, and that was a huge success, because it’s already hard to work with the government. We wanted to make sure that meeting that need was expedited. Also, people were asking for information, so we created a toolkit that localities could use to educate people on the Opportunity Zone legislation. At HUD.gov, you can see our one-year report, our annual report. It’s a great teaching tool.”

Mayor Suarez:
“How have projects like Liberty Square and UNI Tower impacted growth?”

Secretary Turner:

“Well, and you just gave great examples in the Uni that we just visited, and to tour that project and to see the quality that was put into the project and to the units that new families will live in, and in Liberty Square. And that’s a great picture of public-private partnerships, of the public interest and the private interest coming together. You’re seeing elected officials, entrepreneurs, developers, community leaders, faith leaders, education leaders, all coming to the table to identify the problem, but then to create strategies for long-term sustainability. We came here five years ago for the ribbon cutting for Liberty Square and for the Uni Tower. And so now you’re seeing a manifestation of the reality of people coming together, ideating, strategizing, investing.”

Mayor Suarez:
“How should dignity guide our efforts?”

Secretary Turner:

“Dignity is important. When people’s dignity is restored, they can dream again. When people’s dignity is restored, it allows them to have vision and hope for the future. And so I think when you look at Opportunity Zones and you look at projects like Uni that we just visited, and to tour that project and to see the quality that was put into the project and to the units that new families will live in, that’s all I thought about when that person gets the keys to this new, beautiful unit. It’s going to restore dignity in their life. Because if you go in that unit and you go in a market rate unit and you see no difference and everybody is the same, there’s a computer room, there’s a business center, there’s a gym, there’s a workout, it restores people. And poverty doesn’t have a color. It’s not black, it’s not white. Poverty doesn’t have a party. It’s not Republican or Democrat. Poverty impacts all of us. And so I take it very seriously to attack and to obliterate poverty.”

Mayor Suarez:
“Reflecting on our Overtown Youth Center visit with Senators Scott and Rubio, what stands out?”

Secretary Turner:

“I think they’re one and the same. It’s a community and public-private partnership and people coming together for one root cause, then and now.“

Mayor Suarez:
“What’s the lasting legacy of Opportunity Zones?”

Secretary Turner:

“I think the word that comes to my mind is transformative, to transform the lives of individuals and families. And so I would love for our legacy to be they laid their life down for the good of the country and for the good of every American citizen. And when I say that, when I say lay our life down, meaning that we did everything we could with all the power and disposal and influence that we have to make it better for every American person in our country with the resources that we have, and particularly called Opportunity Zones.”

A Blueprint for Transformation

The Opportunity Zone Summit fireside chat showcased the transformative potential and power of Opportunity Zones, with HUD Secretary Scott Turner delivering a powerful national vision. He highlighted Miami’s Liberty Square and UNI Tower projects as shining examples—public-private partnerships that provide quality housing and drive economic progress. “When people’s dignity is restored, they can dream again,” Turner emphasized, positioning Opportunity Zones as a bold strategy to “attack and obliterate poverty,” far beyond a mere tax incentive.