A TITAN OF LAND USE LAW IS RETIRING

ST. PETERSBURG TIMES

By AARON SHAROCKMAN and WILL VAN SANT

CLEARWATER, February 8, 2006 - His great-great-grandfather homesteaded on the Belleview Biltmore property and his uncle once owned most all of what would become the city of Seminole.

Tim Johnson's legacy in Pinellas County may be that he helped redevelop most everything else. Johnson, a powerful development attorney praised by colleagues as uniquely effective but chastised by critics as overly influential, said Tuesday that he is retiring later this year and moving to northern California, 33 years after forming what is now one of Pinellas' most prestigious and successful law firms.

Johnson, 60, said he and his wife, Clair, are leaving to be closer to their daughter Kathryn and granddaughter Ella.

They've already purchased a $1.9-million home in Woodside, Calif. Johnson will retire as partner in the firm Johnson, Pope, Bokor, Ruppel & Burns in September.

"Efforts to get them back East have been fruitless," Johnson said Tuesday. "And you never want to get between a grandmother and her grandchild. It's a force bigger than I."

When it comes to a rezoning or a development application, Johnson is a force himself.

He often chooses the toughest cases with the loudest and most organized opponents. He has represented homeowners fighting developers and developers fighting homeowners.

He takes "the first side to have the check clear the bank," said Ed Armstrong, Johnson, Pope's managing shareholder and another prominent land-use attorney. (Johnson howled in laughter when he heard that.)

He represented Kiran Patel, the latest in a string of developers pushing for building a Clearwater Beach hotel. With Johnson on board, Clearwater City Manager Bill Horne conceded the dynamic had changed.

Horne was right. Johnson won.

He took the case of developers trying to build an apartment complex in Oldsmar for low-to-middle income tenants despite the vociferous objections of the City Council and nearby residents.

Johnson threatened all types of legal action -- and won.

He argued on behalf of Mel Sembler to switch 30 acres from an industrial park into a shopping complex. He won.

He swung most of the owners of a 178-unit mobile park from complainers to followers, even when his client is the one buying them out.

"His reputation precedes him," said Pinellas County Commissioner Bob Stewart, who could not name a lawyer with a better record before the County Commission.

It's ironic, of course, that the same day he said he would retire, he lost a case. He failed to persuade the County Commission to rezone a parcel from a maximum of five homes to 48.

On the surface, it was a stunning increase of density, but neighborhood opponents said they still argue against Johnson.

"If a developer comes into your neighborhood with an attorney like Tim Johnson," said Rick Snyder, a 43-year-old CPA who fought Johnson's most recent efforts, "the only thing you can do is hire another Tim Johnson and spend the money to do that."

Johnson's law firm formed in 1973 with a card table, two chairs a telephone and one small client, he said.

Now the 40-lawyer firm represents most major developers in the county and a host of others, including the Church of Scientology. Sometimes called just "The Firm," Johnson, Pope employees contribute thousands of dollars to political campaigns each year.

The political connections and the propensity to take on almost any client has drawn critics. Armstrong said Johnson relishes his "Darth Vader image."

"Some people may look at me that way," Johnson said. "But I have a big investment in community, too. And I haven't done anything I'm ashamed of."

Johnson helped form Leadership Pinellas, a group that promotes community leadership, in the 1970s. He was also the youngest president of the nonprofit group that manages Ruth Eckerd Hall.

As he contemplated retirement late last year, Johnson, a Republican said he also thought of running for public office. He considered challenging state Rep. Gus Bilirakis, who is running for his father's congressional seat.

"I thought it was going to be fascinating," said Johnson, who said money would not have been an issue. "When I studied it, what I realized would be fascinating was the race. Once elected, I would be extremely frustrated in Washington."

Johnson, a man with a dry wit and sometimes self-effacing sense of humor, said he'll keep working until his retirement in September. He'll take as many cases as he can without preference.

His hourly fee, he says, is enough "to put bread on the table."