Yonkers rules committee to forward settlement resolutions to pay subcontractors on training facility contract

The Yonkers City Council rules committee heard from a law department representative that two settlement resolutions will be sent to the full council seeking payment to subcontractors who were not paid by the general contractor on a training-facility contract.

The law department representative said the city will seek approval next week to pay SteelSmith Inc. $226,782 and D and J Concrete Corp $206,000 for work on the Yonkers police-fire training facility. "These 2 matters are not truly a settlement, as far as judgments and claims are concerned," the law department representative said. "It arises out of a contract matter." The representative added the general contractor, Icon Construction, failed to pay its subcontractors and that the subcontractors filed liens that prohibited the city from paying Icon.

The representative told the committee the law department "figured out a way to compensate both subcontractors by entering into grama with all parties to pay the subcontractors directly." The committee was told both items "will go on to the agenda for next week's council." The committee did not take a final vote on either resolution at the rules meeting.

Why it matters: Council approval would allow the city to make direct payments to two subcontractors on a contract for the city's training facility instead of leaving the subcontractors unpaid while the contractor is responsible. The law department characterized the actions as a contract-payment mechanism rather than a judgment or claim against the city.

Details reported to the committee: SteelSmith Inc. — $226,782; D and J Concrete Corp — $206,000. Committee discussion described liens filed by the subcontractors that barred payment to the general contractor until the matter was resolved. The law department representative said the proposed route is an agreement among the parties to permit the city to pay the subcontractors directly.

The record at the rules meeting does not show that the council approved the payments; both items were referred to the full council agenda for consideration next week. No timing for payment or additional conditions were stated at the rules meeting.