Work to go on at LCHS

LYNN – A recent indictment of a contractor working on the demolition project at Classical High School will not delay the work taking place at the school, according to city officials, who say the project will be completed well before the state can take legal action against the firm.GVW Inc. of East Boston, along with its owner, George Wattendorf of Swampscott, were indicted by a Suffolk County Grand Jury on Feb. 14 for alleged violations of state prevailing wage and overtime laws, as well as charges of lying on certified payroll records and perjury.While the charges could potentially mean serious repercussions for the company, city officials say the proceedings will not delay the Classical project because as of now, GVW has not been convicted, and is still certified as a licensed contractor.”We did consult with the Attorney General’s office Wednesday, and they indicated that there is no legal reason not to go forward with the project at this time,” said Assistant City Solicitor George Markopoulos. “The matter in Boston is ongoing, but there is no conviction and they are still licensed, so the city of Lynn is going to move forward until the company has been convicted and de-certified.”The city’s inspectional services department awarded GVW a $762,435 bid on Feb. 5 to demolish sections of slab under two wings of the school in preparation for structural repairs that will prevent the building’s foundation from sinking into the ground.The work, which includes tearing down interior walls, demolishing the support slabs, and moving underground wiring, started this month and is expected to take place until late April or early May.GVW won the contract because it offered the lowest bid to the city, but if the firm is convicted on the indictments, the city may have to re-open the bidding process or offer the work to the second lowest bidder.Markopoulos indicated that the city would have to take a close look at purchasing and bidding procedure if that were the case, but he did not anticipate the situation becoming a problem.Inspectional Services Director Michael Donovan agreed, noting that GVW is only slated to perform the phase two-demolition portion of the four-phase project, meaning that all of the work would likely be completed prior to any court proceedings.”This is a big job, but it isn’t going to take a long time,” Donovan said. “They are supposed to be out of there by some time in early May, which would be well before any court dates or convictions would take place.”Donovan did say the project was on hold for a day or two when the ruling first came down, but for the most part nothing about the project has changed, and the work has experienced “no material delay.”The Attorney General’s office began investigating GVW in February of 2007, after a former employee filed a non-payment of wage complaint with the Fair Labor Division. As a result, GVW and Wattendorf are each accused of failing to pay six of their employees the prevailing wage for work they performed at different public construction jobs, along with failure to pay overtime to three employees.Both Wattendorf and the company are also charged with six counts of failure to submit true and accurate certified payroll records, and the company is also charged with two counts of perjury.