BURTON ISD FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST THREE FIRMS IN BOND PROJECT

  

Burton ISD is suing three contractors involved in the school district’s bond construction project.

The lawsuit, filed on Friday in 21^st District Court, names DSA Inc., Circle H Dirt Work and Excavation, and Round Top HVAC.  In the lawsuit, the district cites breach of contract and other claims in connection to services performed for the $43.8 million bond project.  The district is seeking recovery of $6,158,407 in damages.

Last week, Burton ISD trustees agreed to authorize outside counsel to file the lawsuit.  A statement from Burton ISD Superintendent Vikki Curry reads, “Burton ISD is committed to its students and is working to ensure the facility improvements are performed in a quality manner.  Burton ISD will continue to work with its legal team to achieve this goal.”

Curry’s statement said the district will refrain from further comment due to the existence of litigation.

Burton ISD is being represented by Jerry Negrete of The Chapman Firm PLLC.

The lawsuit accuses DSA, the former construction manager-agent for the project, of failing to appropriately assess the work performed and advise the district of any issues identified, prepare accurate project applications for payment reflecting materials actually purchased and work actually performed, and provide Burton ISD access to project-related documents and accounting.

The district terminated its contract with DSA in June and entered into a new contract with Weaver & Jacobs Constructors.  The district is refusing to pay invoices received from DSA that the company claims are past due, given the dispute over goods delivered and services performed.

Additionally, the lawsuit claims that Circle H Dirt Work and Excavation received $2,685,000 in payment “despite the performance of minimal work, most of which was deficient.”  It also says Circle H did not acquire the necessary performance bond.

The lawsuit states that Circle H’s dirt work created gullying in the soil pad against the high school building.  The high school flooded during heavy rains in January 2024; per the lawsuit, an investigation by Keystone Experts and Engineers determined that gullying allowed water to rise above the elevation of the wall vents into the building and caused backflow into the sewer, which entered through a floor drain in the girls’ bathroom and flooded most of the high school.  This resulted in the district having to pay $120,000 out of pocket to repair property damage. 

Circle H was chosen as the primary contractor for site prep work at an amount of $4,015,050.  In August 2023, Burton ISD trustees released Circle H from their contract and proceeded with Champion Site Prep. 

Circle H owner Dalton Hambelton told KWHI that the company had zero equipment on site when the flooding on campus occurred, several months after Circle H received its termination letter and the new dirt contractor was working with the district.  He said the termination letter did not give a cause, meaning the termination was for “convenience, not performance.”  He added that the company was paid its retainage, all of its work was tested and approved by a third party, and that the work was “100 percent adequate.”

As for Round Top HVAC, the lawsuit accuses the company of diverting $960,939 in payments from Burton ISD to other projects and knowingly issuing invoices for equipment and services that the company did not provide. 

Round Top HVAC was selected as the prime contractor for HVAC materials and labor for $2,150,000. 

KWHI reached out to DSA Inc. and Round Top HVAC, but DSA declined comment at this time, and Round Top HVAC could not be reached for comment.