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.
Hellbound and Down 