John Smyth
2025-02-19 17:28:23 UTC
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Permalinkupon merit and qualifications you get what you deserve.
'Obama library, begun with lofty DEI goals, now plagued by $40M racially
charged suit, ballooning costs
The Black-owned firm claims it was accused of underperforming in the
project because of race'
<https://www.foxnews.com/us/obama-center-subcontractor-hired-under-dei-initiative-now-suing-40m-racial-discrimination-lawsuit>
'Construction of former President Barack Obama's long-awaited library
and museum in Chicago began with ambitious plans for diversity, equity
and inclusion (DEI) but is now plagued by huge cost overruns, delays and
a $40.75-million, racially charged lawsuit filed by a minority
contractor.
From the outset, the endeavor touted DEI as a key part of enshrining
Obama's legacy at the 19.3-acre site, where costs have ballooned from an
initial $350 million to $830 million in 2021 based on its previous
annual reports, with no publicly available figures available for updated
projected costs. The project set out "ambitious goals" for certain
construction diversity quotas, with its contracts to be allocated to
"diverse suppliers," 35% of which were required to be minority-based
enterprises (MBEs).
"With these aggressive goals, the foundation is hoping to set a new
precedent for diversity and inclusion in major construction projects in
Chicago and beyond," the Obama Foundation wrote in a 2017 press
release.'
'The importance of DEI was cited on several occasions in an explosive
lawsuit filed last month by Robert McGee, the Black co-owner of II in
One Construction. The firm is a minority-owned business subcontractor
that provided concrete and rebar services for the center.
It is not clear what role DEI quotas played in the hiring of II In One
as a subcontractor. II In One was one of three firms that made up a
joint venture called Concrete Collective. The other firms included
another minority firm called Trice Construction Company along with W.E.
O’Neil. Together they formed a 51% minority-led joint-venture team.
McGee alleged that he and his firm were racially discriminated against
by Thornton Tomasetti, a New York-based company that oversees structural
engineering and design services.
In the lawsuit, McGee claims that Thornton Tomasetti changed standards
and imposed new rules around rebar spacing and tolerance requirements
that differed from the American Concrete Institute standards. The suit
claims these changes resulted in his firm running up massive overruns in
excess of $40 million, which put it on the verge of bankruptcy.
McGee's lawsuit stems from a memorandum Thornton Tomasetti wrote to the
project’s leading construction partners about a year ago claiming that
II in One — and the contracting firm it teamed up with on the project —
were responsible for numerous challenges during the project.
The memorandum contained images of cracked slabs and exposed rebar to
support its claims. Thornton Tomasetti said it spent hundreds of hours
reviewing, analyzing, re-designing, and responding to corrective work
and that subcontractors caused "a multitude of problems in the field."
"The construction issues were all unequivocally driven by the
underperformance and inexperience of the concrete subcontractor," the
memorandum states.
Thornton Tomasetti said the challenges with the concrete were due solely
to the subcontractors and wrote that it "cannot stand by while
contractors attempt to blame their own shortcomings on the design team."
The memo goes on to state that Thornton Tomasetti and an architectural
firm, "bent over backwards to assist what everyone knows was a
questionably qualified subcontractor team in areas where a more
qualified subcontractor would not have required it."
The Obama Presidential Center
The Obama Presidential Center pictured this week. (Fox News)
That memorandum served as the basis of McGee’s lawsuit last month, as he
alleges it contained "baseless criticisms and defamatory and
discriminatory accusations."
The lawsuit claims that Thornton Tomasetti undermined the project’s
diversity and inclusion goals, which were outlined in the project's
general contract. The lawsuit also cites a DEI report by the project's
construction manager in 2022, which outlines the project as "achieving
significant diverse business participation." A report breaking down the
demographics of those involved in the project was also released in
April.
The suit claims the plaintiffs were "subjected to unjustified and
discriminatory conduct… which directly undermined the Obama Foundation’s
DEI goals and commitments, and mission to bring transformative change to
the construction industry and local community by providing solutions to
barriers that have historically prevented disadvantaged businesses from
participating on projects of this magnitude."
The lawsuit claims that Thornton Tomasetti violated the Civil Rights Act
of 1866 and that its alleged "defamatory and discriminatory statements
and actions," caused II in One, Bob McGee and the other subcontractors
to suffer extreme financial losses and potential bankruptcy.
The suit alleges that Thornton Tomasetti discriminated against II In One
"on the basis of race."
McGee claims Thornton Tomasetti falsely accused II in One of lacking
sufficient qualifications and experience to perform its work, while
stating in the memo that non-minority-owned contractors were
sufficiently qualified.
The lawsuit also claims the Obama Foundation relied on Thornton
Tomasetti’s memo for not paying the subcontracting firms around $40.75
million for "additional costs incurred" at the site near Jackson Park in
Chicago.
McGee's lawsuit refutes the allegations in Thornton Tomasetti's memo
that his firm was inexperienced or questionably qualified, pointing to
II in One’s 40-year track record in the industry and its completion of
major Chicagoland projects, including Millennium Park, Harold Washington
Cultural Center, and the American Airlines terminal at O’Hare Airport.
Cracks in concrete
In a memo, Thornton Tomasetti shared images of cracked slab and exposed
rebar. (Lawsuit)
"Moreover, Bob McGee was aware and supportive of the Obama Foundation’s
diversity and inclusion goals for the project and never imagined that
the Obama Foundation’s structural engineer would single out a
minority-owned subcontractor for unfair criticism and falsely accuse II
in One of lacking sufficient qualifications and experience to perform
its work, while, in the same letter, stating that the non-minority-owned
contractors were sufficiently qualified," the memo reads.
"In a shocking and disheartening turn of events, the African American
owner of a local construction company finds himself and his company on
the brink of forced closure because of racial discrimination by the
structural engineer," the lawsuit reads. "II in One and its joint
venture partners … was subjected to baseless criticisms and defamatory
and discriminatory accusations by the Obama Foundation’s structural
engineer, Thornton Tomasetti."
The Obama Foundation said it is not a party to this lawsuit, and
insisted that it will not cause any delays in the concrete work, which
it says has already been largely completed.
"If the Foundation believed that any vendor was acting with a racist
intent, we would immediately take appropriate action," Emily Bittner,
the vice president of communications at the Obama Foundation, told Fox
News Digital in a statement recently. The foundation has not responded
to requests for information on the updated cost of the project.
The Obama Presidential Center aims to honor the political career of
former President Barack Obama. It will consist of a museum, a library,
conference facilities, a gymnasium and a regulation-sized NBA court. It
will also house the nonprofit Obama Foundation, which is overseeing the
center’s development.
OBAMA CENTER SUBCONTRACTOR FILES $40M DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT AGAINST
ENGINEERING FIRM FOR OVERRUNS
WATCH: Obama Presidential Center expected to open in 2026
Obama Presidential Center expected to open in 2026Video
CHICAGO SOUTH SIDE RESIDENTS SAY THEY'RE BEING DISPLACED BY OBAMA
CENTER: CAUSING 'HARM TO BLACK FAMILIES'
The project has faced problems in the past. Construction was initially
anticipated to begin in 2018, but it was delayed until 2021. It is
scheduled to open sometime in 2026.
Some community activists claim the new center will cause prices for
homes and rent to increase and may price out many of those who live in
the area. Environmental activists have also been critical of the
project, arguing that it would remove too many trees and destroy some
bird habitats.
Activists threatened to sue to block developments, but the plan to build
the center was approved shortly after a lawsuit was filed, according to
Newsweek. The Supreme Court denied the request to hear the case in 2021.
Pritzker and the Obamas
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker joins former President Barack Obama and
former first lady Michelle Obama in a ceremonial groundbreaking at the
Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park on Sept. 28, 2021, in Chicago.
(Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Representatives for II in One declined to comment. Fox News Digital also
contacted representatives for Thornton Tomasetti for comment.
Court documents show that on Jan. 31, Thornton Tomasetti, Inc. and Scott
A. Schneider, a senior principal and structural engineer at the firm,
filed for an extension of time to answer the complaint. The court
extended the deadline for their answer to March 5, 2025