The Power and Influence 100: Scott Syphax Profile

Sacramento, CA — September 1, 2008
By: Dayna Dunteman, Sacramento Magazine

A 2008 assessment of those wielding power and influence in the region shows the game has changed.

When it comes to power, many think of it as a weapon to be brandished. Position, wealth, charisma, status, ego, brains, drive—the conventional trappings of power have been wielded like clubs since time began, and those with this kind of power in the Sacramento region are not hard to spot.

However, since we last looked at the region’s power players two years ago (“50 Most Powerful People,” July 2006), much has changed. Many people championing new endeavors and initiatives have come to the forefront, while an evolving world and slowing economy have pushed some formerly powerful folks and their industries to the sidelines.

Our in-depth analysis of who is shaping the region also revealed a new dimension, a less obvious but potent layer of power: those who, by virtue of their efforts, timing and collaborations, wield influence. They don’t readily get noticed at the “A” table at Ella or Spataro, but without them, key initiatives and businesses within the region would not be the power centers that they are—or soon will become.

The following list reflects this new game. We dug deeper this time, both in terms of the people included and the variety of fields represented. On our roster of 100 are those wielding power and influence in the obvious fields of business, development, law and philanthropy. But we’ve also included high tech, media, green, public relations and dining—fields that previously stayed below the collective radar but that have become ever more important in shaping our lives.

In several cases, these men and women are imposing alternative visions. Some are empire builders, some tastemakers, some stewards, some contrarians and some hired guns. Most, but not all, have dared to stick their necks out for the common good. Many have won the admiration and sometimes grudging respect of their peers, adversaries and the community at large. Some have built a reputation on collaboration and good will, others by causing a ruckus.

SCOTT SYPHAX, developer—Since taking over as president/CEO of Nehemiah Corporation seven years ago, Syphax has transformed a program started with $5,000 in 1994 by an African American preacher in Sacramento into one of the largest community nonprofits in the country, providing more than $1 billion in mortgage assistance to almost 300,000 homebuyers of modest means. But when President Bush this summer signed a housing bill banning such programs, Syphax was prepared. His firm, long a source of controversy, has been charting a new course as an urban developer, joining Envision Holdings LLC partners Steve Goodwin and Ron Mellon in the construction of nearly 3,000 homes, condos, town homes and apartments (some with riverfront views) in an industrial area north of the downtown railyard. This past July, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed a bill to expedite $19.1 million in bond money for the 65-acre transit-oriented Township 9 development.

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For additional information, please contact Shelley Mitchell, smitchell@nehemiahcorp.org, 916-231-1999.

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