Mike Owen spent years helping build the Obama Idolatry Worship Center Obama Presidential Center. On June 25, the owner and president of Adamson Plumbing Contractors suspended operations, laid off 25 union workers, and abandoned about six other construction jobs.
“Before the center opened, Owen said the project had left his company with $3.9 million in losses tied to delays, rework, labor overruns, and changing project demands. He said he spent months negotiating with Lakeside Alliance, the project’s construction manager, before going public after failing to reach a resolution,” the article read.
Indeed, the center was reportedly also costing taxpayers more and more money as it put out a call for unpaid volunteers even though its chief executive would be paid a salary of $740,000, according to reports.
In regard to Owen’s battle over the nearly $4 million payment dispute, his company that performed the work under the name Marsh-Adamson, has filed a $1.72 million mechanic’s lien against the center’s property in an effort to be paid for the work.
“Laying off close to 30 people is something that no owner in our industry wants to do. It’s a hard thing to do, especially when you know you can finish them and the company can still make money. But we were put in a pretty bad corner,” he said.
A project promoted as an investment in Chicago's South Side had become, in Owen's account, the job that pushed his company to the edge.
Owen says Adamson lost about $3.9 million through delays, rework, labor overruns, and changing demands. The company performed roughly $12 million in work after starting with a bid near $6.9 million. Marsh-Adamson, the name used for its work on the center, has filed a $1.72 million mechanic's lien against the property.
The immediate break came just before the center opened on June 19. Owen says Lakeside Alliance, the project's construction manager, agreed to release $100,000 if Adamson supplied two journeyman plumbers for last-minute nighttime work. His crew completed the assignment, but the money didn't arrive before the opening.
Lakeside eventually sent the $100,000, along with about $35,000 for change orders. The payments arrived more than two weeks after Adamson had suspended operations and dismissed its workers. The money reduced a debt to one supplier, but it didn't reverse the shutdown.
Owen has moved out of his company's building and is working from home while attorneys handle the dispute. He says Adamson may regroup in September, but its future remains uncertain.
After 35 years in the industry, he may now have to find a job.
Adamson isn't the only contractor raising alarms; several companies have pursued liens, lawsuits, or bankruptcy protection connected to the project. Omar Shareer, president of the African American Contractors Association, said 10 subcontractors had contacted him about payment problems. ENR Midwest:
Communication from the Obama Foundation has largely broken down, the subcontractors claim, as they seek payments through the project's prime contractor, Lakeside Alliance, a joint venture that includes Turner Construction Co., Power and Sons Construction, UJAMAA Construction, Brown & Momen, Safeway Constructiion. W.E. O'Neil Construction Co.,. Trice Construction Co. and II in One Concrete are involved in the project as the Concrete Collective joint venture, serving as the concrete contractor. II in One Concrete previously filed a lawsuit against the project's engineer, Thorntom Tomasetti, over concrete and rebar installation.
Most of the subcontractors involved with the project declined to speak on the record but said they were gathering information and weighing whether to file liens or lawsuits.
Omar Shareef, president of the African American Contractors Association, told Crain's Chicago Business that seven separate subcontractors have contacted him in recent months for help pursuing payments.
The Obama Foundation says it paid Lakeside Alliance, has no disputed charges with the construction manager, and holds no direct contracts with subcontractors. Lakeside says closing out a project involving hundreds of companies, thousands of design documents, and extensive change orders can continue long after opening day.
Those statements explain the payment chain, but they don't restore 25 jobs, reopen Adamson's doors, or pay suppliers who expected the contractor to meet its obligations.
Adamson completed the requested work, but the payment did not arrive on time, according to Owen, who said it was the company's breaking point and left him with no choice but to suspend operations on June 25.
"We negotiated it in good faith," he said. "Against my better judgment, I agreed [to do the work]."
"Not getting that large sum of money just kind of pulled the brakes on the train. It was just the final death blow to the company," he added. "Rather than try to stretch it out and go bankrupt, I just decided the responsible thing was to shut it down. We’ll regroup, and we’ll see where we’re at come September."
Owen said that the promised $100,000 retainage payment and around $35,000 for change orders payments have since arrived from Lakeside Alliance — more than two weeks after he suspended operations and laid off 25 workers.
Owen said the money helped reduce the company’s debt to one supplier but did not reverse the shutdown.
"It’s almost like too little, too late," Owen said. "It probably would have just prolonged the inevitable at this point," he said. "We’re still deep in the hole of what they owe us."
The $850 million Monument to Obama center opened with speeches, music, celebrities, and praise for Barack Hussein Obama's political legacy.
Pfft! Sorry, something burped up into my mouth.
Owen's company suspended operations six days later. A foundation built around empowerment shouldn't treat a struggling subcontractor as somebody else's paperwork issue.
Contract language will decide who owes what; leadership involves more than pointing toward the next name on an organizational chart. When an institution puts its reputation behind a project, it also owns a duty to confront the damage left behind.
Mike Owen helped build the center. The people responsible for completing Barack Hussein Obama's legacy project should make sure the work doesn't finish off the company that installed its plumbing.
But here's the thing to me: it's not exactly shocking that an Obama project falls short in its promises.
Right?
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