Construction company sues D-158, D-200
By BRIAN SLUPSKI – bslupski@nwherald.com
Two McHenry County school districts are facing lawsuits from a construction company that alleges it was not fully paid for work on new schools.
In each case, however, school officials expressed surprise at the legal action filed by Construction Systems Inc., noting that they had not had contact with the company regarding any billing disputes.
Company officials with Construction Systems Inc., based in Staples, Minn., did not return a call seeking comment. Attorneys for the company also did not return calls seeking comment.
In the separate court actions, Construction Systems Inc. has sued District 158 for $689,735 and District 200 for more than $1.2 million. In each case, the company alleges that the school districts have “wrongfully withheld and failed to pay” Construction Systems.
In the District 158 case, the lawsuit references work done at the Square Barn Road Campus about four years ago.
“We knew nothing about this,” District 158 Superintendent John Burkey said. “This work was done in 2005, and the school opened.”
Burkey, who joined the district in July 2006, was not with the school district during the project in question. Burkey said he checked with the district’s buildings and ground personnel who also were unaware of any issues with the project.
“We don’t know what they are talking about,” Burkey said. “Since I’ve been here, there has been no contact with this company.”
District 200 officials said they had turned the lawsuit over to their attorneys. When asked whether District 200 had any contact with Construction Systems Inc. over unpaid bills, Chief Financial Officer Risa Hanson said: “No. Not to my knowledge.”
The District 158 lawsuit focuses on change orders and blames the school district’s construction manager with causing cost overruns for Construction Systems: “[T]he [district] failed to coordinate the work of the contractors, including the masonry contractor, such that CSI was unable to begin and complete its work in a timely fashion.”
The lawsuit states that although the company was paid $1.05 million, it still is owed $137,450. Additionally, the lawsuit asserts that the company is owed about $552,000 in “extras.”
The District 200 lawsuit uses similar language and makes similar allegations related to the construction of Woodstock North High School. The lawsuit asserts that although Construction Systems Inc. was paid $3.09 million, there is an outstanding balance of $418,000. Also, the company alleges that it is owed $847,030 for “extras.”
