As of July 16, 2020, seven different contractors have filed seven mechanics liens totaling $11.2M million against a project at the Drive Shack golf entertainment complex in New Orleans, LA.
The seven liens list 3800 Howard Investors, LLC as the property owner, with Drive Shack New Orleans, LLC leasing the property. While the New Orleans Drive Shack is still under construction, the company currently operates in four locations between Florida, North Carolina, and Virginia. All seven mechanics liens were processed with the Parish of Orleans clerk’s office.
Drive Shack’s New Orleans construction project broke ground back on June 20, 2019, according to NOLA.com, and it is scheduled to be completed by late 2020.
$11.2M in Construction Liens at Drive Shack New Orleans
In total, the seven different mechanics lien filings total $11,274,343.60 in unpaid construction work at the Drive Shack project taking place at 3800 Howard Ave, New Orleans, LA.
To date, general contractor VCC, LLC has filed the largest claim against the Drive Shack project. According to the lief affidavit, VCC is currently owed $7,019,041 after filing the claim on May 29, 2020.
Likely due to Drive Shack New Orleans’ failure to pay the general contractor, VCC now faces five lien claims on the same project totaling $4,155,646.77 in unpaid work to subcontractors.
Subcontractor Durr Heavy Construction, LLC has filed the largest claim to date against VCC. The mechanics lien is valued at $2.4M and was placed on June 2, 2020. The second-largest claim filed against VCC was valued at $808,837 from Varuso Ventures, LLC on July 2, 2020.
As of July 10, 2020, Durr Heavy Construction is also named in a claim on the same project. Subcontractor Quality Sitework Materials, Inc. placed its claim valued at $99,655.83.
VCC’s Additional Lien Trouble
Aside from owing $4.1M to five contractors in New Orleans at Drive Shack, general contractor VCC is also facing lien claims at a shopping center project in Miami, FL.
VCC currently owes at least 12 different contractors payment as of July 2020 for a project at the Esplanade at Aventura shopping center in Miami. At this project in Miami, VCC owes a total of $10,418,112.5 in mechanics lien filings.
Combined with the debt accrued in New Orleans, VCC currently owes at least $14,573,759.30 to 17 contractors.
A $29M Golf Entertainment Complex
According to NOLA.com, the Drive Shack golf entertainment complex is valued at $29M and is located where The Times-Picayune news organization previously operated out of on Howard Avenue.The demolition of The Times-Picayune building paved the way for Drive Shack’s three-level, 62,000-square-foot gamified driving range.
Drive Shack’s New Orleans facility is paced to include 90 climate-controlled driving range bays and a full-service restaurant and bar.
VCC Accused of Racketeering in San Diego, CA
In an unrelated case, the Drive Shack project’s general contractor, VCC, faces claims of racketeering in San Diego, CA. According to the Bloomberg Law report from July 8, 2020, the pending racketeering claim against VCC was filed by a commercial developer. The report states that VCC is alleged to have conducted both “fraud and bid-rigging schemes.” A San Diego federal judge ruled in July that part of the lawsuit does not currently include enough evidence to advance the claim.