Rendell taps Fox Chapel donor for transition team

The Pittsburgh multimillionaire who gave the most to Gov.-elect Ed Rendell's campaign says all he wants in return is Rendell's ear.

"I don't want a position in the Cabinet or anything," said Stephen C. Frobouck, 60, of Fox Chapel. "But I want to be an adviser."

He got his wish.

Rendell said in a telephone interview Friday he's made Frobouck one of five co-chairmen of his transition team, entrusted to develop proposals for economic development, management and productivity. Rendell is to announce the remaining members Sunday in Philadelphia.

Once the transition team's work is done, Frobouck will remain on the new Democratic governor's "Kitchen Cabinet," an important part of a small circle of friends Rendell consults.

"I think he's going to be a tremendous help," Rendell said.

Frobouck made "hundreds of millions" in the sale of his telecommunications firm ComNet Ericsson to a subsidiary of Tyco International in the spring of 2001. Now, though he remains president and co-owner of Pittsburgh's Anderson Group of Companies Inc., Frobouck considers himself retired, ready to enter a new phase of life where he uses his money and expertise to advance philanthropic and public projects.

To that end, Frobouck gave at least $668,000 to Rendell's campaign — though he says $500,000 of that is a loan he expects to be repaid — and threw his support behind his longtime friend in exchange for a single promise.

Frobouck remembers telling Rendell, the former mayor of Philadelphia, that he wants a say in "how some of this public money is spent on infrastructure and projects."

Frobouck made his comments during a telephone interview from Philadelphia this week. During the interview, he paused to divert calls from a handful of political friends, among them Catherine Baker Knoll of McKees Rocks, Rendell's running mate.

"My dear," Frobouck said to the lieutenant governor-elect, who was calling from Washington. "Can you call back in 15 minutes?"

Rendell's spokesman, Dan Fee, says Frobouck's voice has been an important one for the governor-elect to hear.

"If you've been friends with someone for 20 years, you trust their judgment," Fee said. "But Stephen has certainly been an incredibly successful businessman. His business was high-tech and telecommunications infrastructure, and the state needs to seriously do more in the sector — particularly in our smaller communities — to revitalize."

People such as Frobouck, Fee said, "are the kinds of friends you want to have."

Frobouck formed Anderson Group with friends William Anderson and Steven Savor in 1995, excited about the telecommunications industry after advising Robert Crown, of Crown Communications in Texas. Anderson built scores of transmission towers for AT&T Wireless in Ohio and Michigan and then bought ComNet Ericsson from General Electric. The wireless company competed with the likes of Motorola to equip state and local governments with police and emergency radio systems.

Frobouck is a highly private man who shuns the spotlight, doesn't like his picture to be taken and refused television interviews on election night, when Rendell was swept into office. He's also gregarious and quick-witted.

His path to high places began as an offensive guard and linebacker for the University of Virginia in 1961, took him through law school at Duquesne University in 1968, into practice as a bond counselor and partner in RRZ Investment Management Inc. and then, in the mid-1990s, into the telecommunications business that made him his fortune.

He's made his mark in Allegheny County in quiet ways. Frobouck was a primary consultant on the planning for the Pittsburgh International Airport. Two years ago, his company lent the troubled Three Rivers Regatta $120,000 to keep it afloat. Frobouck forgave the debt a year ago.

He met Rendell in 1980, while working in the failed campaign to re-elect President Jimmy Carter. The experience made a lasting impression on Frobouck, who became important to the war chests of several politicians. Though he describes himself as a lifelong Democrat, Frobouck has backed prominent Republicans as well.

Most recently, Frobouck, through Anderson Group, contributed $100,000 to Florida Gov. Jeb Bush's successful re-election campaign. Frobouck explained he owns a house in Vero Beach, Fla., is a close friend of the governor's and trusts that his leadership is best for Florida.

The Bush contribution came after ComNet Ericsson signed a contract in September 2000 worth $365 million to streamline the Florida government's communication system. In the months before ComNet was sold to the Tyco subsidiary, the company placed Rendell on an advisory board, paid him $25,000 for his year of service and awarded him stock options worth $279,000 when Tyco bought the business.

Rendell has received some criticism for releasing his tax return late in the campaign that outlined the ComNet payment. He released the return only a few days before voters went to the polls. His opponent, Republican Attorney General Mike Fisher of Upper St. Clair, released his months ago.

Rendell stressed Friday he was only one of a dozen members of an advisory board replete with politicians from both parties, among them Haley Barbour, who served as chairman of the Republican National Committee opposite Rendell's tenure as chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

"It was very important to the company to get a board of advisers with government experience," Rendell said.

"Just by being on the advisory board, having been the former DNC chair as well as a former mayor of a big city, to a company that was trying to do governmental work, I think I added credibility to the company," Rendell said. "And when he called me to tell me that the company was sold and that we were getting (stock options), I said, 'I didn't earn this,' and he said, 'Look, everyone on the board is getting it. It's not something I'm doing special for you. … If you guys hadn't been on the board, I'm not sure we would've been as successful as we were.' "

Frobouck says he picked Rendell for the ComNet advisory board because of his expertise on emergency communication systems in major cities.

As for the generous payout when ComNet was sold, Frobouck said, "It's no different than buying stock in the stock market, and it goes up and you sell it. We hit the market right at the right time."

Allegheny County Chief Executive Jim Roddey — whose own campaign benefited from Frobouck's generosity — says one of the most notable things about the businessman is his intelligence.

"I know a lot of bright people who agonize about taking a risk," Roddey said. "He can make a decision. … I'm glad to see him involved in the transition."

Former colleague Donald Rea, from RRZ, says Frobouck once secured a $300 million letter of commitment from a New York bank within 24 hours during a time that RRZ was trying to float a bond issue for a large incinerator project. Rea considered the accomplishment impressive work.

"Some people can have all the numbers and still not be able to do it," Rea said. "He was able to explain the transaction and convince the guy that it was good. … He's the kind of guy you meet and you'd like to have a beer with."

Which infrastructure projects are most important to Frobouck?

Frobouck, born and raised in Glassport in the Mon Valley, says he's a big supporter of the Mon-Fayette Expressway. He also believes Pittsburgh is in serious need of a stronger mass transit system and improved routes into and out of the city.

"We should be building a second Fort Pitt Tunnel, instead of rebuilding the one that's there," he said.

Though he supported the development of Pittsburgh International Airport, he considers the facility a "white elephant."

"If you look at the East Coast, all the international airports … they're all full," Frobouck said. "Why don't we do what happened in Atlanta in 1974• When they opened Hartsfield (airport), Atlanta was a one-horse town. We've got to develop that airport."

Frobouck also sees too much duplication in government. He expresses bewilderment over Allegheny County's 130 municipalities.

He questions whether a proposed plan to build a high-speed magnetic levitation train from the airport through Pittsburgh to Monroeville and Greensburg is a good expenditure of public money.

Through it all, he insists he's not in it for the money.

"Ed Rendell is the most qualified person I have ever met in my 30-odd years in politics," Frobouck said. "I just felt that as a result of where we were and what was going on, rather than me going out and trying to make another couple hundred million bucks, that I wanted to get involved in public affairs … and use my expertise and experience to try to help the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania."

Home: Fox Chapel

Business: Anderson Group of Companies Inc.

Wife: Reanette E. Frobouck

Frobouck was born and raised in Glassport, where he played high school football and won an athletic scholarship to the University of Virginia in 1961. A broken hand in 1963 led him away from Virginia. He graduated from Slippery Rock University in 1965 and received his law degree from Duquesne University in 1968. Frobouck worked as a bond counselor in private practice and then as an investment banker and partner in Pittsburgh powerhouse investment firm Russell, Rea and Zappala, which later became RRZ Investment Management Inc.

He left the firm in 1990 and went out on his own. A friendship with the father of Robert Crown, then of Crown Communications, a telecommunications company based in Texas, got him interested in the telecommunications industry. Frobouck and close friends William Anderson and Steven Savor formed the Anderson Group of Companies Inc., which later bought ComNet Ericsson from General Electric and Ericsson's mobile radio division. ComNet is a wireless radio communications company that competed with Motorola for government contracts. Anderson sold the business in the spring of 2001 to Tyco Electronics.

Frobouck has contributed to the campaigns of Gov.-elect Ed Rendell, Allegheny County Chief Executive Jim Roddey, Gov. Dick Thornburgh, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, President Jimmy Carter, Sen. George Allen of Virginia and others.