In his interview with Seventh Circuit Judicial Nominating Committee, Ponte Vedra lawyer Zachary Watson Miller identified this man as his mentor in the business of representing developers. From Florida Times-Union:
Jacksonville lobbyist loved, loathed - but respected
Lawyer has shaped deals involving the stadium, landfill, Jaguars and zoning.
He is Jacksonville's highest-profile lobbyist, with a reputation for delivering for his equally high-profile clients.
He is also a hot-tempered and cunning strategist who likes to win big, even if it means ticking off the competition.
And he is seen as so powerful that even his political foes won't criticize him publicly.
Paul Harden, a Jacksonville native and son of a former School Board chairman, seems to know everybody and everybody knows him. He makes friends over dinners and rounds of golf, and he makes enemies at the negotiating table.
"He's a sharp-elbow guy," close friend and former Mayor John Delaney said. "He doesn't just want to win badly, he wants to win big."
He does win, often.
The successful Trail Ridge deal with Waste Management? Harden. The continuing, lucrative contract SMG has to operate the city's sports facilities? Harden. The Jaguars' stadium lease with the city? Harden, too.
City Councilman Art Graham compares Harden, 58, to Morgan Freeman's character in "The Shawshank Redemption," who boasts about being a one-stop shop to satisfy all his fellow inmates' vices. Graham said Harden demonstrates that same quality, whether it be helping support a mayor's pet project behind the scenes, getting difficult rezonings approved for clients or negotiating the city's contract with the Jaguars.
"He is a man who can get things done," Graham said.
Harden said Graham's analysis is correct.
"That means I'm effective," he said matter-of-factly.
Networking
Harden, a lawyer, has been lobbying City Hall for the past 25 years. The names change, but he has found a way to strengthen his existing relationships and build new ones.
City Councilman Richard Clark, one of Harden's closest friends on the council, said that's how he outworks the competition.
Back on election night in 2007, Clark was making the rounds at various victory parties, hoping to introduce himself to newly elected council members before state Sunshine laws forbade them from meeting privately. He ran into Harden twice.
"I'm out there trying to build relationships with new guys and people I don't know," Clark said. "Paul was out there working."
Harden's extensive client list is a product of his successes over the years.
He was a lobbyist for Waste Management when it was awarded the Trail Ridge contract in 1991 and has had the company as a client ever since. This year, he again lobbied for - and won - a once-dead settlement deal to allow Waste Management to operate the landfill for another 26 years.
He has been the lobbyist for SMG ever since the city awarded the company a 1992 contract to operate the stadium, arena, baseball grounds and all other sports and entertainment facilities. That contract has been renewed four times since then, keeping SMG from the uncertainty of competitive bidding.
Harden is also the lobbyist for courthouse builder Turner Construction and has been the Jacksonville Jaguars' voice in City Hall since their inception. Then there are the dozens of landowners and developers he has represented over the years on zoning issues, his main area of interest.
Relationship-building is part of the job for all lobbyists but in Jacksonville, nobody is more skilled than Harden. Friends say his brain is always working, and he keeps mental notes of every conversation. He figures out a person's likes and dislikes, wants and needs.
He laughs often and makes friends easily. He can be spitting mad at you on Tuesday and joke about it with you on Wednesday.
"Politics is a business where your adversary might be your best ally in the next vote," Harden said. "So you don't want to burn any bridges."
Delaney, also a fellow lawyer, is one of Harden's best friends. It was Delaney, then the city's chief of staff, and Harden, representing the ownership team, that helped finalize the deal that led to the Jaguars coming to the city. Before then, Harden's angry clashes with the general counsel led to a breakdown in talks.
"Paul Harden can have a bit of an ego and can be a little arrogant," said Delaney, now president of the University of North Florida.
Over the years, Delaney said, he and Harden have had "a few knock-down, drag-outs," but there is a mutual respect and admiration. Delaney describes Harden as a guy whose tough exterior hides a softer side, and said he is "phenomenally loyal to his friends and family."
Mike Saylor, the city's former planning director who has a long history as a consultant on land deals, has known Harden for years. Sometimes the two were on opposing sides of an issue, other times they were on the same team.
Always, Saylor said, Harden is working on an angle.
"He plays his relationships as well as he plays his knowledge of the law and knowledge of the precedents," Saylor said. "He forms pretty close relationships with the people that matter."
Started young
Harden was driven at a young age: He earned a bachelor's degree from University of Florida at age 19 - in less than three years - by taking full course loads every term, even the summer. He obtained a law degree from Florida State University and then worked in Tampa for a year before moving back to his hometown.
Harden was still a young man when he joined Jacksonville's Greene, Greene, Smith and Davenport law firm in 1976. One partner, Thomas Greene, was a powerful City Hall lobbyist.
Harden worked on Jake Godbold's successful mayoral campaign in 1979 and, a year later, Godbold appointed him to the city's Planning Commission. By the time he left the commission in 1984, including a term as its chairman, Harden was lobbying the council on behalf of developers.
"I guess he was a bright young man because he started learning a lot about zoning and he made a career out of that time," Godbold said recently.
A few years later, Greene - known as the go-to guy for companies wanting city contracts - was sent to prison after convictions for mail fraud and lying to banks.
Harden had already ventured out on his own by then, and had begun to replace his former boss as the man companies sought out when trying to get projects approved at the city.
Former City Councilman Matt Carlucci recently said that after being elected in 1987, he initially kept his distance from Harden because of what he heard. But the longer he served, Carlucci said, the more he grew to respect and like the lobbyist.
"He's studied Jacksonville's government and Ordinance Code probably better than most attorneys or any attorneys that I know," Carlucci said. "That's his job to argue on behalf of his clients, and he's very good at it because he knows his facts."
Today, Harden says he splits his time between traditional lobbying and the law. He said he is effective in City Hall because he understands that politics is a transactional business.
"One person wants one thing; one person wants another," he said. "You have to find out a way to get to compromise and a majority vote."
About half of Harden's lobbying is tied to the relatively low-profile sector of land-use issues. But when a big contract is up for council approval, more than likely it involves one of his clients. And they expect Harden to deliver.
Former City Councilman Matt Carlucci recently said that after being elected in 1987, he initially kept his distance from Harden because of what he heard. But the longer he served, Carlucci said, the more he grew to respect and like the lobbyist.
"He's studied Jacksonville's government and Ordinance Code probably better than most attorneys or any attorneys that I know," Carlucci said. "That's his job to argue on behalf of his clients, and he's very good at it because he knows his facts."
Today, Harden says he splits his time between traditional lobbying and the law. He said he is effective in City Hall because he understands that politics is a transactional business.
"One person wants one thing; one person wants another," he said. "You have to find out a way to get to compromise and a majority vote."
About half of Harden's lobbying is tied to the relatively low-profile sector of land-use issues. But when a big contract is up for council approval, more than likely it involves one of his clients. And they expect Harden to deliver.
These contracts - like the recent Trail Ridge deal, worth an estimated $459 million over 26 years - bring attention, both positive and negative.
In the summer of 2008, Mayor John Peyton's staff had negotiated a different contract extension with Waste Management that would have allowed the company to continue operating and put to rest a disagreement about the terms of the initial contract from the early '90s.
Harden's message to the City Council was nowhere near the deferential, almost intimidated, manner that most people use at council meetings.
"Believe me, if you don't pass this [bill], it's retirement for me because we're going to litigate it until the cows come home," he told the Rules Committee members one morning.
Relentless
Even some who had known Harden for years complained about feeling backed in a corner. Councilwoman E. Denise Lee, who has known Harden since the late '70s, let him know it.
"I said, 'Paul, those kinds of statements are arrogant statements,' " Lee recently recalled telling him at the time.
Harden says he wasn't threatening the council but informing them of the facts of the case.
"My job is to provide information to council members on behalf of my clients," he said last month. "That's what lawyers do. I'm an advocate and there's not anything wrong with that."
The council didn't go along. It put the brakes on the approval process to allow for more time to scrutinize the deal. Harden's statements also provided fuel to the opposition, mainly Councilman Jack Webb and Republic Services, in fighting for competitive bidding.
In April 2009, the council rejected the mayor's proposal. Just like Harden promised, Waste Management sued. Roughly a year later, court-ordered mediation resulted in a new settlement deal for council approval that had the same result: Waste Management would continue operating the landfill.
This time, Harden left the cows at home.
He took a more low-key approach and focused on the council members he felt would be most open to supporting the settlement, communicating Waste Management's talking points through telephone conversations or in person.
Meeting as a committee-as-a-whole, the council initially recommended the settlement be rejected, too. But the slim 9-8 margin, and the absence of two council members, left wiggle room for Harden to do what he does best.
Councilman Art Shad, another one of Harden's close friends on the council, even commented after the committee meeting that all Harden had to do was get two more votes, and that he probably could.
One week later, the council voted again on Trail Ridge. This time its action would be binding.
Harden took his usual seat near the front of council chambers. He barely watched the screen as 10 of the council members chose to accept the deal.
In addition to picking up absentee Michael Corrigan's vote, Reggie Brown and Johnny Gaffney switched from "no" to "yes," saying their research the week preceding the vote made them confident the settlement was the best possible deal.
Brown said he has cultivated a business relationship with Harden since joining the council and dines with him about once a month. He said he listens to what Harden has to stay but votes his conscience.
"There is the perception that with Paul he has his henchmen and they are going to do whatever he says," Brown said, "and that's not the case, I know, with me."
Graham, who had voted against the settlement, left the meeting before the controversial vote was taken, citing a scheduling conflict.
(On the other hand, only one councilman, Daniel Davis, switched from "yes" to "no," saying that he decided not to support the settlement because he felt the city had a strong chance of beating Waste Management in court.)
Mystical aura
Shad said his friendship with Harden - they talk to each other at least weekly - had nothing to do with his strong support of the Waste Management deal over the two-year fight or on any other issue that Harden champions.
Much of the criticism about Harden, Shad said, comes from jealousy and envy. Local bloggers and the media have created a "mystical aura" about Harden that simply isn't true, he said.
"He is a darn good attorney," Shad said. "And, at the end of the day, nothing, nothing could take the place of raw talent and knowledge and expertise."
Harden said he often feels vilified in the media and blogs, especially when he is accused of having too much sway among the 19 council members.
"I know it's not true, so I try not to let it upset me," he said. "That's not the worse things they say."
Even when friendships are factored in, Harden doesn't always get his way.
For years, Harden served as Councilman Ronnie Fussell's personal attorney. However, Fussell was one of the more vocal opponents to the Trail Ridge deal, which became an issue during his year as council president.
Though Lee and Harden have known each other for more than 30 years, their relationship has been somewhat strained since she returned to the council in 2007.
They met in 1979, when both worked on Godbold's campaign. Years ago, Harden helped Lee when the state said she didn't file financial disclosures on time.
Lee said she has honored their friendship by leaving her door open to Harden when he wants to discuss his clients' projects. However, after disagreeing with him on a zoning issue two years ago, she wondered if he expected more.
"The feeling I got is: If I don't agree with him, it must mean that I am not for him," she said.
Lee said she and Harden have remained friends despite the rough spots because she is unafraid to go toe-to-toe with him, including on Trail Ridge. She voted to oppose the Waste Management deal both times.
Occasional losses
Other losses have been more high-profile. The most recent example was the council's surprising and contentious presidential election in April.
Well before the new year, then-Vice President Webb had obtained written commitments from 15 of his colleagues pledging their support for him, and he had the verbal support of a handful others. Yet on the morning of the election vote, one of those written commitments - Stephen Joost - called Webb to announce an unprecedented, last-minute challenge.
Never before had another member entered the race on the day of the vote. And it just so happened to be against Webb, who was the council's most vocal opponent to the Trail Ridge deal over the two-year debate.
Webb won by one vote, but he lost the support of several colleagues who had made written commitments, including Clark, Brown, Gaffney and Shad.
Both Harden and Webb declined to discuss what it occurred, saying they wanted to move forward. Joost won't say if Harden encouraged him to run, but he wouldn't say he didn't.
"Regardless of who was advising me, at the end of the day it was my decision," he said.
After the Trail Ridge rejection in April 2009, Harden was also forced to withdraw a San Marco zoning application he was pushing on behalf of his brother.
The Colonial Manor Community Association accused Harden of not properly notifying residents of the proposal to change the brother's home from residentially zoned to commercial. It clashed with the surrounding homes, they argued.
Shad, whose district includes the property, initially supported the application even after Harden admitted to some procedural mistakes. But the Colonial Manor residents complained loudly and wouldn't go away, and Shad eventually got Harden to withdraw.
Kris Barnes, a School Board member at the time, had begun attending community meetings with other neighbors. She said she got the impression that Harden's relationship with the city's Planning Department was too comfortable.
"He can just walk in and do anything he wants with all of them," she said recently. "He has everybody's ears."
Saylor said another one of Harden's strengths is that he has studied the planning department and trends among the building community, which helps him come up with strategies for getting deals approved around the city.
"He has a tremendous command of the marketplace," Saylor said.
Barnes said she doesn't begrudge Harden for becoming such a successful lobbyist, but she wonders if taxpayers sometimes lose out when he wins.
"Whether it's Paul Harden or anyone," she said "when you get a relationship that is so cozy with everyone who is supposed to be making the decisions about your issues coming before them, it doesn't work."
tia.mitchell@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4425
