As real estate investors nationwide continue to dig into the Opportunity Zone program and how it could benefit their firms, University of Southern California professor Gary Painter wants to remind them of the bigger picture.

Opportunity zones create a chance to transform and uplift low-income neighborhoods, said Painter, who serves as the director of the USC Sol Price Center for Social Innovation, which examines ways to improve quality of life in low-income areas.

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This series profiles men and women in commercial real estate who have profoundly transformed our neighborhoods and reshaped our cities, businesses and lifestyles.

HAP Investments co-founder and CEO Eran Polack is no stranger to risk.

The 45-year-old developer, having founded HAP Investments alongside partners Amid Hasid and Nir Amsel in 1998, specializes in identifying emerging markets in which to invest, develop and manage residential and multifamily projects across the globe. The company is credited for being one of the first developers to identify East Harlem as an up-and-coming neighborhood fit for urban revitalization.

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