AAED Elevate Lunch & Learn: Tax-Exempt Municipal Bonds
Thursday, October 8, 2026 (11:00 AM - 12:30 PM) (MST)
Description
This program is intended for tenured economic development professionals in senior leadership roles.
As the cost of capital rises and competition for projects intensifies, knowing which financing tools are available, and how to structure them, has become a bigger part of getting deals done. This session walks through the capital stack tools currently in Arizona's toolbox: Improvement Districts, Community Facilities Districts, and the newly authorized State Affordable Infrastructure Districts (SAIDs), with case studies showing how each has supported different types of projects.
We'll also cover Tax-Exempt Private Activity Bonds under federal and state law, the credit requirements for accessing capital markets, and how these tools can help make a project pencil out while generating economic benefits for cities, towns, and counties.
Who should attend: This session assumes familiarity with public finance concepts and project structuring. It's built for senior-level ecdev professionals who are already negotiating deals or advising on incentive structures.
Speakers:
- Mark Reader | Managing Director at Stifel Nicolaus
- Paul Gales, Jr | Public Finance & Infrastructure Attorney at Greenberg Traurig
- Zach Sakas | Public Finance & Infrastructure Attorney at Greenberg Traurig