Steve Maher says his lifelong love of building, the arts and all things design meant there was never any doubt what he would do for a living.
“It was always in my blood,” he says. “From the time I was 7 years old, my parents said they knew I’d be an architect.”
After college, he worked in New York at the international design and architecture firm Gensler for about five years. During that time, he said he didn’t have a client that wasn’t a Fortune 500 company or a project that was worth less than $30 million. Those were heady days for his business, when money was easy to come by and everyone seemed to be making lots of it.
He considered staying in New York, but family ties lured him back to Baton Rouge to start his firm.
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“I didn’t see myself pushing a stroller in Times Square,” Maher says. “The community aspect of Baton Rouge brought me back. I saw that Baton Rouge was slowly getting its feet underneath it.”
Right now, he’s working on his biggest local job to date, a $35 million multi-use project about which he can’t say much. Overall, work is coming along much less frequently than a couple of years ago, with medical and public-sector facilities among the few bright spots.
“We’re slow because we worked heavy in the private sector,” Maher says. “The guys in the public sector are worried they’re going to be in our position two years from now.”
In any city, it can be difficult to move the ball forward design-wise, he says. People have a tendency to want what they’ve already seen. A certain portion of Baton Rouge-area architecture probably will always mimic the dominant country French look. But Maher says nationally prominent figures who have juried the Rose Awards, hosted by the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects, have come away impressed.
“Baton Rouge is moving in a great direction,” he says. “Some really good stuff is being designed in this city.”
Age: 33
What is Baton Rouge’s biggest strength in the quest to attract young professionals? “Movement. In Baton Rouge, you can be a part of making something great. You can take ownership in the city.”
Click here for the complete list of 2009's Forty Under 40 winners.
Comments
Posted by Being_Stupid on November 17, 2009 at 12:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
These guys (Ritter & Maher) are doing some really good work for Baton Rouge.
They are Building a Better Baton Rouge.
Great Company.
Posted by BR_Native on November 17, 2009 at 9:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)
What a great choice! I've known Steve for a long time. Not only is he a great architect, he's an even better person. This pick is no surprise. He's great for BR!
Posted by craigb on November 18, 2009 at 11:43 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This is a great choice. It is an honor to have a man of such great character and fortitude working to move Baton Rouge forward.
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