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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Lawsuit alleges employees with Flint water contractor were accused of dealing drugs
Updated Apr 16, 10:32 PM; Posted Apr 16, 2:50 PM
Kaiti Sullivan | MLive.com
By Zahra Ahmad | zahmad@mlive.com
FLINT, MI - Two companies that have worked on Flint’s massive lead pipe replacement project are engaged in an ongoing dispute headed to trial next month, records show.
A non-jury trial is scheduled in a lawsuit involving two firms - WT Stevens and Michigan Monk Inc. - for May 29 in Genesee County Circuit Court, records show.
WT Stevens, which Flint contracted for $22.2 million to replace service lines between 2016 and 2019, is suing Michigan Monk Inc. for defamation.
WT Stevens is a Flint construction company and Michigan Monk Inc. is a company specializing in site utilities, mass evacuations and water-main and service line replacements. Both are minority-owned businesses.
The lawsuit, filed more than a year ago, claims representatives of Monk Inc. called city hall stating WT Stevens is “unethical, does not pay its subcontractors, does not pay its bills on time and allows its employees to sell drugs on company time," according to court records.
The suit did not elaborate about the alleged drug dealing. Attorneys for both the plaintiff and defendant could not be reached for comment. Michigan Monk Inc., however, denied the allegations in paperwork filed in response to the lawsuit, records show.
In 2017, WT Stevens hired Michigan Monk as a sub-contractor to help acquire a $10.9 million service line replacement contract with the city of Flint, according to Ellis Monk of Michigan Monk Inc.
Michigan Monk was supposed to get 2 percent of the contract for consulting services, but the company claims it was never paid, records show.
Michigan Monk is pursuing legal avenues to receive the payment the company feels it deserves, according to the lawsuit.
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2 contractors being considered to replace Flint’s remaining lead pipes
Two construction companies could be contracted for $10.8 million to replace Flint’s remaining lead pipes.
Rhonda Grayer, owner of WT Stevens, confirmed Monk consulted for WT Stevens in 2016, but not in 2017. Grayer did not want to provide further comment because the lawsuit is ongoing.
Monk told The Flint Journal-MLive that he was asked to come to Flint first by subcontractor Veo Luster, Flint City Councilman Eric Mays and eventually Mayor Karen Weaver. Councilman Mays denied Monk’s comment.
“(Weaver) wanted to get a black company to get some of the work in there," said Monk, who is black. "They had no black companies in there that did this work, so they basically drafted me to come in there with my expertise and my experience to help a black company get a contract.”
While black-owned, WT Stevens did not have the experience with the kind of work Flint was looking to perform, Monk said. As a consultant, Monk said he provided WT Stevens with the credentials and experience needed to get the service line contracts.
On April 28, 2017, Monk was notified his consulting services were no longer needed, but that his company would be used for its “equipment” and would be hiring Monk as “an employee," records indicate.
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Pipe replacement firms in Flint focused on making money, meeting transcripts show
AECOM employees met frequently with city officials between January and November 2018 to provide updates on the FAST Start service line replacement program.
Monk said he stopped working for WT Stevens on Dec. 8, 2017 after not being paid.
“(WT Steven) was doing some little jobs around, wrecking and that kind of stuff, but they had no pipeline experience to that degree,” Monk said. "By me having 45 years of experience in that thing, (the company) put my credentials in, plus my people that I brought to the table with them, to help get the contract.”
In July of that year, WT Stevens claims Monk said he was “going to ensure that plaintiffs (WT Stevens) received no further contracts from the city of Flint."
The suit claims Monk contacted other WT Steven’s subcontractors - Gustafson HDD, Link Contracting Group, Kenny Hill and Max Isner - as well as the city officials, and told them “they should not do business with plaintiffs (WT Stevens)," according to the lawsuit.
The comments Monk is alleged to have made also lowered WT Stevens “esteem in the community,” according to the lawsuit. WT Stevens claimed the allegations have harmed WT Stevens’ reputation by accusing them of selling drugs and engaging in criminal activity.
The civil suit lists counts of defamation, injurious falsehood, tortious interference with contractual relations and tortious interference with business expectations. It seeks injunctive relief as well as $25,000 or more for costs, incidental and consequential damages.
Monk responded to the allegations in Genesee Circuit Court, denying all counts on April 15, 2018. A pretrial hearing took place on May 22, 2018 and a case evaluation was rejected by both parties on Feb. 22, records show. |
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Wed Apr 17, 2019 2:57 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Monk said he stopped working for WT Stevens on Dec. 8, 2017 after not being paid.
“(WT Steven) was doing some little jobs around, wrecking and that kind of stuff, but they had no pipeline experience to that degree,” Monk said. "By me having 45 years of experience in that thing, (the company) put my credentials in, plus my people that I brought to the table with them, to help get the contract.”
Michigan Monk Inc Filed for Corporation on 5/2/2012 (800 747445 ID )as a Domestic Profit Corporation under Trucing, Excavation, general construction and for residential, commercial, institutional and governmental. Ellis P. Monk is the owner and the corporation is located at 11000 W. Nichols ste. 100, Detroit, 48221.
Buzzfile shows the corporation as being a special trades contractor, performing construction, excavation work, and sewer line construction. |
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Sun Apr 21, 2019 6:41 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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| new allegations arise involving Mays, |
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Mon May 06, 2019 3:57 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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FLINT LEAD PIPE REPLACEMENT AND POSSIBLE CORRUPTION
RENKMay 6, 2019
Interesting that we have not heard anything about possible corruption regarding Flint choosing lead pipe replacement companies.
I could not find any articles written in a Michigan newspaper concerning a company chosen by the city of Flint to replace some of the lead pipes, which caused the Flint water crises. It took an article in a national news site the Daily Caller to find out that there may be corruption within the city of Flint.
The Daily Caller is reporting that the city of Flint has given $22 million dollars to a company that had zero experience in replacing lead water pipes. The company in question is named WT Stevens. The contractor is a general construction company and has a very basic website which shows a picture of a home being built.
In the article a Flint Councilwoman, Eva Worthing, told The Daily Caller News Foundation:
The city ignored a model showing where lead pipes are and paid to dig up every yard, the vast majority of which had copper pipes, according to meeting minutes. The city also prohibited contractors from using an efficient method of digging holes known as hydrovac excavation.
That leveled the playing field for a contractor, WT Stevens, with no experience or the appropriate equipment — and let it bill far more to taxpayers, she says. All of these factors, she adds, needlessly led to more waiting for anyone who actually has lead pipes.
She went on to tell the Daily Caller:
The city “chose to dig up yards that they knew were copper, and they decided to hand dig instead of hydrovac…That was because WT Stevens didn’t have the ability, and you get more money [digging by hand]. It costs $250 [to hydrovac] versus thousands” to dig a large hole without the equipment.
What I believe adds to the concern of corruption is on April 27, Councilman Eric Mays said:
“We’ve taken in over $647 million. This is where the money is at. We’ve received about $167 million for pipe replacement.” He added that he’s “proud” that Flint “broke records for giving black folks money” through contracts, naming WT Stevens. The company is owned by Rhonda Grayer, a black woman and wife of a former NBA player.
What does it matter that this Councilman is so proud that “black folks” were given these contracts? The contracts should go to the companies that have experience in the work and bid the contract at a reasonable price. If it comes down to two companies with similar experience and cost then they can decide using other factors in choosing which company receives the taxpayer funded contracts.
In fact the Daily Caller is reporting that a Flint-based company named Goyette Mechanical, whom already performs water main work throughout the state and actually has a division called “municipal utilities,” did do a portion of the pipe replacement in the city of Flint initially, but was ultimately passed over for the latest round of water contracts. The Daily Caller reported:
Goyette provided the lowest bid, but a city official said there was a problem with it and started the process over, according to The Flint Journal.
Sounds like there may be more to the smell in the city of Flint besides the lead in the water. Could that odor also be the smell of corruption?
Why aren't Michigan newspapers and other media reporting on this?
The Live with Renk show airs Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to noon, to let me know your thoughts call (269) 441-9595 |
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Mon May 06, 2019 3:48 pm |
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