The once-powerful Philadelphia state senator wanted Rendell to make him chairman in 2003. Rendell, fearing Fumo's habit of setting his own agenda, named himself as chair instead - and then designated Estey as his stand-in at meetings.
Estey recalled "nearly getting kicked out" of the Capital Grille in Philadelphia amid a shouting match with Fumo.
"When guys are bullies, sometimes you have to push back," he said. "They think they can push you around, and you have to show them they can't."
He may have pushed back at Fumo, but one board member, electricians union leader John "Johnny Doc" Dougherty, says Estey could have showed more guts over the years as chairman.
"The same thing that makes him an effective manager during good times makes him move slower when we have issues here," Dougherty said.
Estey points out, however, that he instituted several major changes at the agency well before this summer. He led in trimming 120 staff positions - a 12 percent drop - and halted the practice of awarding professional contracts without bids.
That was how his own law firm - Ballard Spahr, which collected $3 million in recent years as the DRPA's general counsel - lost its contract with the agency. It chose not to bid under the new rules. The new counsel is Duane Morris.
Rendell said it was he, not Estey, who dragged his foot in pushing for some changes.
"I did not know of all the abuses, but I knew it was a patronage mill. . . . I didn't give John and the board the right instructions. I take the blame for that," he said.
What will become of Estey's clout when Rendell leaves office in January?
He will undoubtedly continue to benefit Ballard Spahr from contacts at all levels of government.
But most of his appointed positions have been conferred by Rendell. Has he now established a power base of his own?
That could depend, in part, on whether his old pal Onorato is elected governor. Among the $124,000 that Estey has contributed to political candidates in the past decade is the $36,000 he has given to Onorato.
"I am frankly not very concerned with power," Estey said. "I would hope that my success as an advocate for my clients and for the causes in which I believe would flow from the merits of my arguments and my integrity, not from my real or perceived relationship with any elected official.
"In the end," he said, "I still believe that the better idea will carry the day, not the better relationship."
Contact staff writer Tom Infield at 610-313-8205 or tinfield@phillynews.com.
