Portland’s new $56 million cold storage warehouse was promoted as a major investment in Maine’s working waterfront and regional food economy. Several Maine construction companies say they are still waiting to be paid for work they performed on the project.

These are not abstract accounting disputes. These are local contractors, workers, vendors, and families who showed up, did the job, and now face the consequences of unpaid bills. The contractors paid their skilled workers and completed the job.

The Clock is Ticking

Every day that passes without payment puts more pressure on Maine small businesses.

Amount Due with interest, legal Fees and additional expenses:

This Is About Fairness

Maine contractors are expected to meet deadlines, honor contracts, pay workers, and stand behind their work. The same standard should apply to the owners, developers, and project partners behind major publicly celebrated developments.

The Maine International Cold Storage Facility was developed by Amber Infrastructure, an international “infrastructure investment” and “asset management” firm headquartered in London. The Facility is a 107,000-square-foot waterfront cold storage facility constructed on port-owned land in Portland and leased by the Maine Port Authority for a term of 50 years. The project is fully operational and actively generating substantial economic benefit for the parties involved.

Yet, despite the success of the project - and despite the fact that no party disputes the quality, value, or workmanship of the work performed - numerous Maine contractors and tradespeople who physically built this Facility have still not been fully paid for their labor, materials, and contractually owed retainage.

The international private equity developer, Amber Infrastructure, is being paid. The Maryland-based general contractor, FCL, has been paid millions of dollars. The Maine Port Authority, funded by taxpayers, is now receiving substantial rental income from the operational Facility. But the local Maine contractors - the men and women who showed up every day with their lunch pails, worked through Maine weather conditions, and delivered a first-class waterfront facility - continue to wait for payment while being forced to incur substantial litigation costs simply to recover monies that are rightfully owed to them.

This situation is deeply disappointing, fundamentally unfair, and Mainers need to know. These are not speculative claims, nor disputes over defective work. To the contrary, the work performed has been acknowledged by all to meet or exceed industry standards and has resulted in a successful, functioning world-class Facility that all other parties continue to benefit from financially.

Maine contractors deserve to be paid for the work they performed. They should not be forced to bankroll a major infrastructure project while sophisticated entities and well-funded stakeholders reap the benefits of a completed and operational development.

At its core, this matter is about basic fairness, accountability, and respect for the Maine workers and businesses whose skill, labor, and commitment made this landmark project possible.

If Maine companies helped build it, Maine companies should be paid.