🔒Portland cold storage contractors demand payment on millions owed

Close to a dozen contractors who worked on Portland's cold storage warehouse say they are still owed millions of dollars for their work, more than 500 days after the facility opened. Standing shoulder to shoulder outside the $56 million complex they helped build, representatives of three companies demanded payment for meeting their contractual obligations at a press conference organized by the Associated General Contractors of Maine. “This is not an abstract business dispute, nor a disagreement about workmanship or defective construction,” Kelly Flagg, the group’s executive director, told Wednesday’s gathering.

“The contractors standing behind me today, and many others across Maine, did exactly what was asked of them. They hired workers, they purchased materials, they paid their suppliers, they met their deadline and they delivered a world-class facility on Maine’s waterfront,” she said. “And then they waited … and waited … and waited … while millions of dollars in payments remain outstanding.” While there’s no estimate of the combined total owed to contractors, three who spoke on Wednesday are collectively owed nearly $3.3 million, according to a running total posted on the newly launched website PayMaineContractors.com. “Every day that passes without payment puts more pressure on small Maine business,” it says on the site. Flagg told Mainebiz that the actual dollar amount is likely much higher, with nearly a dozen contractors still owed money. The 106,000-square-foot Maine International Cold Storage Facility was intended to turn Portland into a regional logistics hub for seafood, produce, food and beverage products and biopharmaceuticals that need to be stored and transported at super-cryogenic temperatures. Accessible by truck, train and container ship, it sits at 20 W. Commercial St., next to the International Marine Terminal. Some contractors with accounts receivable for their work on the project filed civil lawsuits last year naming the developer — U.K.-based Amber Infrastructure — and the Illinois-based general contractor, FCL Builders, as defendants, along with the Maine Port Authority as the owner of the land that anchors the warehouse. John Giffune, a partner at Portland-based law firm Verrill representing FCL Builders, said his client is working collaboratively with Amber and subcontractors to resolve various claims. Those include two subcontractor lawsuits recently dismissed by Justice Michael A. Duddy of the Maine Business and Consumer Court, he noted.

'Enough is enough'

With lawsuits still pending and questions remaining about who should pay the outstanding bills, contractors are stepping up pressure by taking their dispute public. Lined up in safety vests at Wednesday’s press conference, they gathered in front of a truck displaying a banner that read, “Time to pay up. Don’t leave Maine contractors out in the cold.” The truck belonged to Gorham Sand & Gravel Inc., which is owed about $1 million not including attorneys’ fees, interest or other expenses, according to Mark Curtis, general manager of the Buxton-based company. Despite following the “chain of command” throughout the building project, a significant amount of the work the company performed remains unpaid, he said. The company is among those that have taken legal action, though Curtis underscored that it is one of multiple subcontractors and local companies with deep roots in Maine caught in the crossfire. “When they are not paid, it doesn’t just hurt a balance sheet,” he said. “It affects paychecks, families and the broader construction economy in our state.” Scotty Linscott of Cumberland-based H.B. Fleming said, “I never agreed to finance the project, but this is effectively what’s happened. The Maine contractors should not be taken advantage of.” Along similar lines, Andy LeConte of Cumberland-based Main Line Fence Co. said, “This isn’t just a financial hit. It’s a slap in the face to all the hardworking Maine professionals who gave their all to this project. Silence, and lack of accountability, is infuriating. Enough is enough. It’s time for someone to take responsibility and do the right thing.”

Cost warning

Curtis, of Gorham Sand & Gravel, said he sees the situation as a warning for future projects that are funded from a mix of public and private money and Maine’s construction sector as a whole. “If the people who actually move the dirt and pour the concrete cannot trust that they will be paid when they follow the rules and do the work, fewer local firms will be willing to step up," he said. “That will drive up costs, drive work to out-of-state firms and ultimately hurt the very communities these projects are supposed to benefit.”

Amber Infrastructure, Maine DOT

Chris Cochrane, a New York-based executive vice president with Amber Infrastructure, told Mainebiz via email that the subcontractors worked with for FCL Builders — and not directly for Amber. "While we have been working with the prime contractor to ensure many subcontractors with disputes have been paid, or in the process of being paid, in full on this project, the subcontractors ... are still in the ongoing litigation in the court system where several legal issues are being addressed," Cochrane said. Maine Port Authority declined to comment, deferring to the Maine Department of Transportation. In a statement emailed to Mainebiz, a spokesman for MDOT said the agency is aware of the concerns raised by contractors and subcontractors associated with the cold storage project but could not comment on specific contractual provisions or legal strategies due to active litigation involving private parties. "Our focus remains on protecting the public interest, ensuring continued operation of this important economic asset and monitoring the ongoing legal proceedings," the spokesman added. "We recognize the important contributions Maine contractors and tradespeople made in constructing the facility and look forward to a resolution of this issue.”