Raising the roof a mile high: attorney Steve Farber helped bring Democratic Convention to town.

• Author: Cote, Mike
• Position: [DNC CO-CHAIR] - Interview

Attorney Steve Farber has long been known as a powerhouse in political fundraising circles. A quick peek at the photos on the walls of his downtown Denver office offers ample clues: Farber with Bill Clinton, Farber with John Kerry, Farber with Bill Ritter. And you might spot a couple of Republicans up there, too.

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But the dominant image these days on Farber's wall of fame is a black-and-white map of the United States from a century ago printed to promote the 1908 Democratic Convention.

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"See that sunny spot! That's it!" a headline on the map says.

That sunny spot would be Denver, which a century ago was an upstart city that felt compelled to make sure the rest of the country knew where it was.

A hundred years later, Farber aims to make the rest of the world know about Denver and Colorado as organizers prepare for the onslaught of political leaders and media who will arrive in August for the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Many will be staying at hotels that weren't yet built 10 years ago, the last time Denver was gunning for the convention.

We talked with the convention host committee co-chair recently in his 22nd floor office at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, the law firm he started in the late '60s with his childhood friend Norm Brownstein. (We ranked the pair at No. 2 this year in our "Colorado's 25 Most Powerful People" list.)

Q. HOW DID YOU BECOME INVOLVED IN BRINGING THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION TO DENVER AND RAISING MONEY TO PAY FOR IT?

A. It's the ultimate challenge in political fundraising. Years ago, Elbra Wedgeworth, former president of the Denver City Council, called and said she would like to help bring the Democratic convention to Denver in 2008 and asked if I would be interested in being the chair in the effort.

Elbra and I had talked previously about that. In 1998, President Clinton had appointed me to the site selection committee to select the 2000 convention. I was on the other side of the table trying to determine which cities would be the best cities to host the convention. In 2000, the final cities were Boston, Denver and Los Angeles.

Denver's issue at the time was the shortage of hotel rooms. Denver had put down Casper and Cheyenne, Wyo., as some of the hotel rooms that they would use for the convention. I suggested (to the committee) that that was probably a good idea because it was only a 20-minute drive from Casper or Cheyenne to Denver. I exaggerated a little...