Painters say school district did not pay for work on new building | Business

By Rose Schneider – Findlay Courier Staff Writer

FINDLAY, OH (The Courier) - Painters who worked on the new Glenwood Middle School building claim a subcontractor has yet to pay them for their labor, a parent of one worker told Findlay's school board Monday.

"We just want to bring justice," said John Eddinger, who was representing the workers.

Eddinger told the board that his son is among four painters who claim Global Contracting Services, of Brook Park, has yet to pay them for work they did on the new school, which opened earlier this year.

"I can't believe these people haven't been paid," he said.

Global Contracting was one of the painting subcontractors of ACI Construction Co. of Alvada, the general contractor for the middle school project.

Findlay schools contracted ACI Construction for $10.7 million for the Glenwood project. Findlay Superintendent Dean Wittwer said Monday that the district has paid ACI Construction.

"We already paid our bill," he said, so the money in question is taxpayer dollars.

ACI Construction used the district money to pay the project's subcontractors, such as Global Contracting, which are then supposed to pay employees who worked on the middle school.

Eddinger pleaded with the board Monday for guidance. He said the workers, who are Findlay High School graduates and community members, have attempted various methods to resolve the conflict but have gained little ground.

"Unfortunately we're a couple steps away from the payment that you need," board President Shane Pochard said, but "we'll try and assist in any way possible."

Wittwer said he was "disappointed that Global hasn't paid" its workers. "It is the responsibility of the employer to pay their employees," he said.

Wittwer said the project's construction manager, Chris Moore of Touchstone CPM, can best resolve the issue.

"Putting pressure on our construction manager is the way to get this done," he said.

Wittwer said he has done just that, having been in contact with Moore on several occasions regarding the painting dispute, which has been going on for about four months.

Moore, Wittwer said, is the only person "to walk this process through with the general contractor and the subcontractors."

Nevertheless, Wittwer said he was "not happy" with the situation and with Global Contracting.

"There were a lot of issues with that painting contractor," he said.

Board member Barb Lockard expressed similar frustration with the situation, saying the school district "paid in good faith that painters would be paid and they weren't."

While the board and Wittwer told Eddinger they support the workers, Wittwer said the process to resolve the matter will be handled by Moore and Touchstone, and will take time.

Separately, Dennis McPheron, the district's director of operations, updated the board on the asbestos abatement and auction of items at Central Middle School.

McPheron said bids for the abatement work on Central, which closed after the new middle schools opened in January, were received last week and will be opened Wednesday.

Once contracts are awarded, McPheron said, abatement is "scheduled right now to begin on April 15 and will conclude in the middle of June."

McPheron said the auction of school items will be on Saturday, March 23, and he is expecting many to attend.

"That's a large, large building," so there are many items to be auctioned off, he said.

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