Title: Senior Manager
Firm: Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors
Age: 32
Steve Scharff has been in his current position with Baker Tilly for about two years but has been working in the financial world since 2015.
What Steve offers to the firm’s clients is exemplified by the innovative and creative approach he used to help design a revolving fund supporting affordable housing for the city of Bloomington, Minnesota.
He employed tax increment financing techniques that allowed the city to build housing by leveraging the upfront investment capital needed against anticipated increases in tax revenues generated by the project.
“The current challenge has been keeping the ‘affordable’ in affordable housing,” said Scharff. ”The opportunities have expanded due to some of the federal funding for issuers and expanded state participation. The creative thinking involved emphasizes the value in exploring grant and tax credit options.”
Steve has also proven himself to be a valuable player on the business side of the muni business by changing the firm’s approach to writing official statements.
The strategy reduces mistakes while boosting operational efficiency. “I love wrestling-the-bear types of projects that really let you stretch your brain,” he said. “Those are great challenges.”
He received an MBA degree from the University of Minnesota in 2019.
Steve’s love for the outdoors crosses over from his career into his downtime and back again. He and his family recently bought land in Montana while also masterminding the financial strategy for a major utility expansion in the state’s largest city, Billings.
“I enjoy all things outdoors: hunting, fishing, camping, and hiking,” Steve said. “We are lucky enough to have an abundance of public land in my home state of Minnesota to explore. My wife and I also have a fondness for Montana and have recently fulfilled a dream of owning land out West.”