Three North Platte construction companies have filed liens against the property at District 177 — the renovated mall — for unpaid work to build some of the new retail stores and apartments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The companies claim they are owed $660,000 for labor and materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another company \u2013 Kingdom Customs Flooring and Construction, led by Eric Wiezorek of North Platte — intends to file a lien on Monday for another $82,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wiezorek said even more sub-contractors have not yet been paid. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Two other North Platte companies previously filed construction liens in February. Those have apparently been resolved, according to Lincoln County records. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wiezorek is outspoken about the situation. He posted his claim at 9 a.m. Friday on social media, sparking hundreds of comments. He had told the Bulletin<\/em> on Thursday afternoon that he thought the time had come to apply public pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The uproar comes as the extensive three-year renovation of the district nears completion. More than 10 retail stores are now open, including the latest two — TJ Maxx and Five Below. Shoppers are steadily arriving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Construction liens are filed with the register of deeds office at the Lincoln County courthouse. The claims make it difficult to sell or re-finance property without first paying the lien holder.\u00a0The claimants have the option to file a lawsuit in district court against the company in an attempt to force payment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In reply to Wiezorek’s claims, the District 177 general construction contractor, New Generation Construction, said Friday afternoon that unpaid invoices from Wiezorek’s company, Kingdom Customs, represent work that has not yet passed inspection \u201crelating to project specifications.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n NGC said store tenants have not officially accepted the space, causing the delay. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On Thursday, Wiezorek told the Bulletin <\/em>that his company installed flooring and painted at TJ Maxx and Five Below, among other stores. He said two of his largest invoices are more than 60 days past the due day that is set in the contract.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He said NGC claims that the floors in one of the stores are uneven, but NGC did not want to pay $22,000 to level the underlying concrete, which was poured for the original mall in the 1970s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wiezorek said he offered to set that invoice aside for more discussion, but the general contractor still declined to pay for the other work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n County records show these three North Platte contractors have filed a total of five liens against the Dist. 177 property owners, mainly North Platte Mall LLC and NGC:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 Mitchell Drywall, $265,000 lien filed May 21 for walls and framing at TJ Maxx and Five Below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 Aupperle Plumbing and Heating, three liens filed May 9 — $36,750 for plumbing at Five Below; $75,974 for plumbing at TJ Maxx, and $24,482 for plumbing at Riddle\u2019s Jewelry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 Halls Electric, $85,439 lien on April 18 for work on the apartments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, Interstate Construction of Greeley, Colo. filed a $172,597 lien on Nov. 4, 2022 for work on the apartments, about a year before the apartments opened, according to the register of deeds’ records.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Two other North Platte companies filed construction liens in February. Those companies have released their claims, apparently after they were paid. They are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 A $63,500 claim from Steele\u2019s Construction of North Platte, filed Feb. 20 and released on April 5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 An $84,000 claim by Troyer Enterprises of North Platte, filed Feb. 1 and released on May 13.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In NGC’s statement, the company said it \u201cwill continue to work with contractors through the remaining items that are necessary to obtain approvals and close out these projects, similar to the process we have successfully employed to reach resolution on previous projects in the district.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n North Platte City Councilman Brad Garrick said he, other members of the council and the mayor are aware of the issues. Garrick wants to see that the contactors are fairly paid while the project continues to increase retail stores and housing options in North Platte.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In Wiezorek’s social media post, he expressed appreciation for the growth and forward momentum in North Platte, but said it is being “funded on the backs of local contractors.” <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Three North Platte construction companies have filed liens against the property at District 177 — the renovated mall — for unpaid work to build some of the new retail stores and apartments. The companies claim they are owed $660,000 for labor and materials. Another company \u2013 Kingdom Customs Flooring and Construction, led by Eric Wiezorek […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1020,"featured_media":98159,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n