BY SANDY THEIS and MICHAEL HAWTHORNE
Enquirer Columbus Bureau
COLUMBUS -- A firm headed by a major fund-raiser for Gov. George Voinovich stands to receive up to $160 million in state business under a radio communications contract approved Monday.
Columbus developer and Voinovich fund-raiser Daniel Slane is a subcontractor for the project, which will link at least 12 state agencies by a network of radio towers across the state. It is expected to be the largest state contract in Ohio history.
While few dispute the need for the new system, legislators have been questioning the price tag, as well as the role of Mr. Slane. Despite such questions, the State Controlling Board approved the contract by a 6-1 vote Monday. The panel amended the contract to require Controlling Board approval of all subcontracts, a change top aides said was intended to increase scrutiny over Mr. Slane. Sen. Rhine McLin, D-Dayton, cast the only no vote and said she remains concerned that the project's cost has risen by $100 million. "I don't think there's any way we can explain that away," she said.
The new system is being developed by TRW Inc. of Lyndhurst, Ohio, and Chicago-based Motorola.
Sandy Drabik, director of the Ohio Department of Administrative Services, said TRW was selected after a complex review. The higher costs occurred, in part, because the state underestimated the number of towers needed, she said.
The state disqualified the only other competitor, Ericsson Inc., because it did not meet five of eight technical requirements, she said.
Yet Ericsson lobbyist Neil Clark, a prominent Republican, said the state "changed, waived or removed" many of the requirements after Ericsson's disqualification.
"What's more amazing is that the state refuses to release information that was important in their decision-making process. Until I see the complete facts, I am going to continue to raise questions about this contract and the people involved in it," including Mr. Slane, he said.
Ms. Drabik said all information -- except any that would reveal trade secrets -- has been released. Still secret, she said, is the location of the 201 radio towers that will serve as the backbone of the new system.
Mr. Slane's firm will oversee construction of the towers. Each will cost between $80,000 and $400,000, depending on whether the land must be bought and developed or whether existing state land can be used.
He has agreed to acquire and lease 121 sites, at a cost of $8.1 million annually -- or $160 million over 20 years, according to the contract.
Top aides to the Republican governor insisted the governor played no role in either the selection of TRW or in TRW's selection of Mr. Slane.
TRW lobbyist Dennis Wojtanowski, a prominent Democrat, said the firm selected Mr. Slane because of his expertise as a developer. He said Mr. Slane recently navigated dozens of local zoning laws when he helped Rite Aid find sites for about 100 drug stores.
Mr. Slane has been a quiet but powerful figure in state government for the past decade.
Mr. Voinovich appointed him to the Ohio Building Authority (OBA), a five-member panel that oversees millions of dollars in bonds used to finance state building projects, including the radio tower project. He served on the panel until March of this year.
Last fall, while still on the OBA, Mr. Slane co-chaired a fund-raiser on behalf of the Republican Governors' Association (RGA). Bob Taft, the Republican nominee for governor, was the event's featured guest.
It was considered "a great opportunity to meet with Bob as he prepares to become Ohio's next governor," Mr. Voinovich wrote in an invitation that the RGA sent to corporate executives.
Mr. Voinovich also noted in the letter that Mr. Slane would be one of two people calling invitees about the "various personal and corporate levels of RGA membership."
A seating chart for the RGA event, provided by Mr. Voinovich's office, shows some of the attendees working for municipal securities firms vying for bond contracts with the building authority.
