ST. LOUIS — There are benefits to running a small business, but health insurance apparently isn’t one of them for Mike Sack, owner of Above and Beyond Construction.
He says he’s in desperate need of a hernia operation.
“It takes a lot for me to do things,†said Sack, 49, of the Spanish Lake area of north ºüÀêÊÓƵ County. “I have been waiting months to try to get the surgery done.â€
He said he’s waiting because he’s broke. He said the ºüÀêÊÓƵ Housing Authority hasn’t paid him for more than $305,000 in work his firm completed. He said he borrowed money and spent “every last dime†so he and his small crew could make repairs and fix up units for occupancy at numerous public housing high-rises and complexes around the city between August 2022 and September 2023.
“If they needed a window boarded up, I was the guy,†he said. “Water leaks, I was the one.â€
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The Housing Authority is going through a transition period. Alana Green resigned last year as its executive director. Also, the Housing Authority and The Habitat Co. severed ties after years of working together. Habitat was managing 1,748 of the 2,809 public housing units in ºüÀêÊÓƵ.
Last month, the Housing Authority said it terminated its relationship with the Chicago-based firm in September 2023 in part due to “excessive deferred maintenance.†Habitat said it chose not to apply for a new contract, ending a relationship dating to the 1990s.
“There were a number of different things going on,†Charlton Hamer, a senior vice president, told the Post-Dispatch in February. “One, first and foremost: limited funding from the federal government to the Housing Authority to address the physical needs of all the sites.â€
The Housing Authority took over management of the properties, including at West Pine Apartments, the subject of a recent news story about maintenance issues at the Central West End property that’s mainly home to senior citizens.
Sack said his firm did work at numerous public housing properties formerly managed by Habitat. He provided internal correspondences to show some of the back and forth with the Housing Authority, including confirmation from Chief of Operations Paul Werner to stop working.
“After reviewing the invoices and work underway, it was clear that Habitat had overextended and authorized a great deal more in work than the budget can support for a number of sites,†Werner wrote to Sack on Oct. 4, 2023.
Sack had offered to sit down and talk with leaders to sort out payment.
On Jan. 12, 2024, acting Executive Director Latasha Barnes wrote to him:
“Thank you for your courtesy in reaching back out to me. SLHA values our relationships with our contractors and strives to pay all monies owed as quickly as possible. However, as a recipient of federal funds, we have an obligation to do our due diligence before issuing payment, and unfortunately, we have not been provided sufficient information from Habitat to satisfy that obligation.â€
Barnes wrote then that two invoices would be paid in the next check run and that she and Werner would be reviewing other invoices.
“They don’t even email me anymore,†Sack said recently.
Now, he’s trying to get paperwork in order to file mechanics liens against the Housing Authority. Given the alleged amount of money owed, an attorney would typically be involved to file a lawsuit. Sack said he can’t afford one.
“I really didn’t want to go this route,†he said.
In January, Artisent Floors, of west ºüÀêÊÓƵ County, filed mechanics liens against the Housing Authority for $132,506.81 for flooring that the firm says it installed at three public housing properties between October and November 2023.
Asked Thursday for comment about the claims, Val Joyner, a spokeswoman for the Housing Authority, said by email:
“As we navigated the process of assuming management, we became aware of a potential arrangement between Above & Beyond and the prior management company, in which outstanding invoices were not paid. We immediately began an investigation to ensure all regulatory requirements were met. Once this investigation is complete and satisfactory, SLHA is committed to paying all invoices in accordance with our fiduciary obligations.â€
Joyner said the flooring company didn’t do work “at any SLHA-owned property†but rather at “mixed-finance developments owned and managed by different entities.â€
“Typical of the mixed-finance structure, SLHA owns the land and issues ground leases to third parties that own the buildings,†Joyner wrote. “We have notified the owner of the building that they have an outstanding obligation and have been assured that they will satisfy payment.â€
The Housing Authority recently advertised for an open accounts payable position, which on Thursday was no longer listed on its website.
There’s still a search underway for an executive director.
Sal Martinez, chairman of the Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, hasn’t responded for recent interview requests but says in a brochure:
“We seek an Executive Director with extensive housing development expertise, capable of harmonizing technical proficiency with a resident-focused approach.â€
As for Sack, he said he racked up $7,000 in emergency room bills last month, but hernia surgery is on hold. After trying to make low-income housing habitable, he said, he feels fortunate to have a roof over his own head.
“If it wasn’t for my son, I’d be homeless,†said Sack.