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Trinity Town Center Stalled At Finish Line

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By KEVIN WIATROWSKI

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 20, 2008

TRINITY - Had everything gone as planned, the developers of Trinity Town Center would be preparing to open the final handful of buildings at the upscale shopping complex.

But disputes with contractors have delayed the project's August construction finale and forced the developers to address millions of dollars in liens filed by contractors and vendors who say they're waiting to be paid for work.
Court filings show dozens of suppliers have filed liens against Trinity Town Center LLP, the corporate parent of the $60 million plaza now under construction at Trinity Boulevard and Little Road. The liens range from a few hundred dollars to $500,000 or more.

Several liens have been settled in recent months, even as more have been filed.

"It's not going to put us out of business, but it hurts," Richard James said of his wait for payment. James' family owned Marlyn Steel Decks Inc. provided roof trusses and other materials to contractor Gravity Systems Inc., which worked on several buildings at the site.
Gravity Systems filed its own lien against Trinity seeking payment of $185,600 on a nearly-$800,000 contract.

Trinity Town Center has been under construction since early last year. It currently has two tenants - Old Harbor Bank and a Raymond James Financial office. The developers have announced a raft of future tenants, including law offices and several high-end restaurants, but none of those have moved in so far.

Last month, the developers said they were delaying the plaza's opening until December. Last week, developers William Planes and Paul Aiello said the bulk of the plaza could open by October.

"On a job of this magnitude, liens are a common occurrence," Aiello said last week. "One month these liens are cleared and the next day a dozen more show up."
Aiello suggested the slow economy is encouraging people to file liens who may have been more willing to wait for payments several years ago.

That sentiment was echoed by Chris Angelou, credit manager for Pompano Beach-based Stone Age Pavers, which filed a lien Thursday for $21,888.

"The economy is definitely dictating the situation," Angelou said. "We want to keep on top of every nickel and dime we spend and that we're owed."

Further complicating matters, Planes and Aiello say they are dissatisfied with their financing deal through New Jersey-based Kennedy Funding and are seeking a new backer for the project.

"In these days and times, it's difficult to go out and get a $50 million replacement loan," Planes said. The developers say they may break the project into three parts in hopes of securing small loans instead.

Meanwhile, Planes and Aiello started writing checks to some of their contractors Monday.

"We're paying what's legitimate, and we're paying it as timely as we can," Planes said.

Planes wouldn't say how much the company spread around last week other than to note: "It's certainly in the seven digits."

The question of which bills are legitimate has caused some of the tension between the developers and their contractors.

Planes and Aiello have been sued in civil court by one contractor. They've refused to pay for metal trusses that have been sitting on their site but remain uninstalled.

They've also refused to pay Tampa-based Italian Cast Stone for architectural details because they say the work came in so far below specifications that it has crumbled in the rain.

"Whether knowingly or unknowingly, they have delivered us a deficient product," Planes said.

Planes has hired another company to finish what Italian Cast Stone started. He also has filed a claim against Italian Cast Stone seeking to be repaid more than $2 million.

Italian Cast Stone disputes the claim of shoddy work and wants to be paid $525,000.

"We do not agree that there's any problem with the product," said Rocco Cafaro, Italian Cast Stone's attorney.

Reporter Kevin Wiatrowski can be reached at (813) 948-4201 or kwiatrowski@tampatrib.com.

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