A Middletown landscaper is suing the contractor that is rebuilding New York State Thruway Authority rest stops for allegedly withholding nearly $600,000 from its small slice of the $450 million project.
McCarey Landscaping Inc. accused ESC Partners of diverting funds meant for its work at the Ardsley and Plattekill service areas.
ESC received funds that had to be used to pay for the jobs, the complaint states, but “has failed to pay over such funds to its subcontractors and suppliers.”
ESC is a joint venture of AECOM Tishman, in Midtown Manhattan, and LeChase Construction Services LLC, Armonk.
(The Thruway Authority refers to the contractor as Empire State Thruway Partners.)
The state awarded a $450 million contract to the joint venture in 2020 to design and build 23 service areas, renovate four service areas, and run the facilities for 33 years.
McCarey Landscaping was founded in 1999 by Donna McCarey and is eligible for contracts for minority-owned businesses. In 2021, ESC awarded the landscaper two contracts, totaling $1,522,555.
The Ardsley rest stop is on northbound I-87 between the Stew Leonard Drive and Route 9A exits. The Plattekill service area is on northbound I-87 in Ulster County between the I-84 and New Paltz – Poughkeepsie exits.
The new service areas reopened last year. They feature restaurants, convenience stores, playgrounds, dog walking areas, electric vehicle charging stations and more.
McCarey claims it did its work in accordance with the plans and specifications. But ESC has failed to pay $597,399, nearly 40% of the contract prices.
The landscaper accused ESC of breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and misappropriation of trust funds.
“LeChase “values the contributions of subcontractors on projects across all of our operations, spokesperson Jeanne Eason stated in an email. “In the case of ESC Partners, LeChase is the minority partner. AECOM Tishman, as majority partner, is responsible for holding contracts and managing accounts with subcontractors, and we defer any comment to them.”
AECOM Tishman declined to comment on the lawsuit.
McCarey is represented by White Plains attorneys Thomas S. Tripodianos and Adam P. Briskin, of Welby, Brady & Greenblatt.
