Speaking about the difficult decision, Owen described the human cost of the shutdown.
“Laying off close to 30 people is something that no owner in our industry wants to do,” Owen said. “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.”
According to Owen, the cash flow crisis did not only affect the Obama project. He said the financial losses forced Adamson Plumbing to abandon roughly six additional construction jobs and left the company staring down the possibility of bankruptcy.
The dispute has now entered the legal arena after Marsh-Adamson filed a $1.72 million mechanic’s lien against the Obama Presidential Center. The filing alleges the company has not received full payment for plumbing work completed during construction. A mechanic’s lien allows contractors or suppliers to seek payment by placing a legal claim against a property when they believe completed work has gone unpaid.
Adamson is not the first subcontractor to publicly raise concerns over the Obama Presidential Center. Several companies involved in the project have previously claimed they suffered significant financial losses or were left waiting for payments. One of the largest ongoing disputes involves the Concrete Collective, which is reportedly seeking more than $40 million in additional compensation.
Owen said the company had already absorbed approximately $3.9 million in losses before the center officially opened. He attributed those losses to repeated construction delays, expensive rework, labor overruns, and constantly changing project requirements. Despite months of negotiations with Lakeside Alliance, the project’s construction manager, Owen said the two sides failed to resolve the dispute.
According to Owen, the situation reached its breaking point shortly before the Obama Presidential Center celebrated its grand opening on June 19.
He explained that Adamson agreed to provide two journeyman plumbers for last-minute housekeeping work during overnight shifts at premium pay rates. In return, Lakeside Alliance allegedly agreed to release part of the company’s outstanding balance before the opening ceremony.
An email reviewed by Fox News reportedly showed a Lakeside Alliance representative informing Owen that $100,000 would be released through Adamson’s May payment application.
Owen said his company fulfilled its end of the agreement, but the money never arrived before the opening ceremony.
“We negotiated it in good faith,” he said. “Against my better judgment, I agreed [to do the work].”
He said the missing payment became the final blow to an already struggling business.
“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.”
Just days later, on June 25, Adamson suspended operations and laid off 25 union workers.
Owen said the promised $100,000 retainage payment, along with approximately $35,000 tied to approved change orders, eventually arrived more than two weeks after the business had already shut its doors.
While the delayed payment helped reduce one outstanding supplier balance, Owen said it did little to improve the company’s overall financial condition.
“It’s almost like too little, too late,” Owen said. “It probably would have just prolonged the inevitable at this point. We’re still deep in the hole of what they owe us.”
Since closing the business, Owen said Adamson has vacated its office space, and he is now working from home while attorneys continue preparing the company’s legal claims.
Although the mechanic’s lien seeks $1.72 million, Owen emphasized that it represents only the claims backed by the strongest documentation, including unpaid invoices, approved change orders, and documented labor overruns.
He maintains that the company’s total losses remain close to $3.9 million and says additional legal action may still follow.
“It doesn’t mean that I’m not going to pursue the $3.9 million in change that we lost overall,” Owen said. “I’m still working with my legal team on that $3.9 million figure because I feel that it’s only right that we still hold ownership at the presidential center accountable.”
Owen also explained that he initially hoped to avoid litigation while negotiations remained active.
“I’m not a litigious person, but at the same time, our legal system is there to protect the small guy,” Owen said. “I’m just going to have to fight this out legally from here on out, and these aren’t cheap costs.”
Lakeside Alliance, a joint venture led by Turner Construction alongside Chicago firms UJAMAA Construction, Powers & Sons Construction, Brown & Momen, and Safeway Construction, served as construction manager for the Obama Presidential Center. The company has previously stated that approximately 475 contractors participated in the project.
In its latest statement, Lakeside Alliance said that contractual closeout work commonly continues well after projects of this size officially open.
“Lakeside Alliance remains committed to working through all outstanding matters to successfully close out the project,” a spokesperson said.
The company did not directly address Owen’s allegations, the employee layoffs, or the recently filed mechanic’s lien.
