The Fort at the Rail Yard in downtown Green Bay's Rail Yard District, January 21. 2025. PC: Fox 11 Online
GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Its grand opening was just this week, but already, problems have surfaced at the new mixed-income apartments in downtown Green Bay, known as The Fort at The Railyard.
“We’re just a small family-owned business, and there are a lot of other small family-owned businesses that worked on this project, and you know, this could take some of them down,” says Michelle Legois.
Legois owns Professional Heating and Air Conditioning Green Bay. She says her company did HVAC work on the new apartment building, but they haven’t been paid everything they’re owed.
“They still owe us over $276,000 dollars,” she says.
Legios says on projects like these, they bill monthly for work. It’s standard practice for the developer to hold onto 10% of that monthly invoice as a retainer. She says it’s the retainer funds that are still owed to her business.
“Every month, it was a fight for money. I always had to contact them, ask when my draw was going to come, when am I going to get my money,” she says. “There were times when the money didn’t appear in time, and we would demobilize from the site until we were paid, and miraculously, in a week we got paid, and they wanted us back on site. And this continued for the whole two years.”
Her business isn’t the only one.
At least five other local businesses have filed liens against the developer, TWG and The Fort, for unpaid funds totaling over $770,000 — not including the money owed to Legois’ business.
Court documents indicate that The Fort and TWG owe:
- $96,379 to Ace Iron & Steel Corp. in Milwaukee
- $262,097 to Bayland Buildings in Green Bay
- $135,245 to Northeast Asphalt in Greenville
- $22,257 to H.J. Martin & Son Inc. in Green Bay
- $255,892 to Lakeland Construction in Manitowoc
One of those businesses says that TWG was responsive to them throughout the project, but when it came time for final payments, they stopped responding. They say requests for status on past-due invoices have been ongoing since the beginning of the year.
Lakeland Construction appears to be the first company to file a lien against the developer in December 2024, followed by H.J. Martin & Son in January; Northeast Asphalt Inc. in April; and Bayland Buildings and Ace Iron & Steel Corp. both in June.
TWG management would not comment on the issue.
“It’s not right. I look at it as they’re stealing from us,” Legois says.
Legois says she didn’t experience any issues when she worked on the Broadway Lofts, also developed by TWG, just a few years before.
While a mixed-income complex is good for the community, she has big concerns about the behind-the-scenes.
“Is there city money attached to this project? Are there tax credits, state money? What kind of money were they given to put this building up? And in my head, they shouldn’t be given that money because they haven’t paid. They owe millions of dollars to their subcontractors,” she said.
Legois’ attorney has filed a notice of intent. If payment isn’t made within 30 days, a lien will be filed.
Legois says she and other subcontractors were told that Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich’s office is investigating the matter.
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