Substantial delays to a redevelopment project in Fort Worth might cost a local contractor big money after the project owner purportedly sent the firm a surety bond default notice.
Le Méridien Fort Worth was originally scheduled to open in April of 2023. However, according to a hotel listing and message board, it appears the opening has been pushed to April 2024 after commercial contractor Muckleroy & Falls failed to hit key construction deadlines.
The company has been working on redeveloping the former Hotel Texas Annex, a historic 13-story building with 189 rooms located at 811 Commerce St. in downtown Fort Worth. Work on the project began in early 2022.
Planned renovations include the addition of new ground-floor dining establishments and a rooftop bar, as well as the creation of 3,000 square feet of meeting space and an update to the sixth-floor pool area. Stylistically, the project is going for a mid-century-inspired design that blends Texas elements with European ones, reported InspireDesign.
However, the project developer, Premier Development, sent Muckleroy & Falls a default notice on Wednesday, claiming that the contractor has defaulted and that its surety bond was being called.
Surety bonds work like insurance and are a critical component of development projects. They assure project owners that contractors will complete work in accordance with the relevant contracts. If the contractor fails to meet its obligations, the bond can cover the costs of hiring a replacement to finish the job and minimize the project owner’s losses.
“[Muckleroy & Falls] has continuously delayed the project. On the last two construction schedules, they have delayed the project multiple weeks. There is a lot of concern from ownership [about] the lack of progress they are making in completing this project,” said Premier CEO Hector Sanchez in a statement to The Dallas Express.
“They were contractually obligated, in a revised contract, to be substantially completed by October 15. It is very doubtful that they will be finished with at least one floor by then on a 14-floor project. The default notice was sent [Wednesday] to their surety,” Sanchez added.
The Dallas Express reached out to Muckleroy & Falls CEO Zach Muckleroy, as well as the firm’s president, Taylor Hale, on multiple occasions, asking whether the company has had a history of defaulting on surety bonds in the past and if it is in fact at risk of default on the Le Méridien Fort Worth project.
No response was received by press time.
Fort Worth has been a hotbed of economic activity and real estate development and was recently named the most pro-growth city in the United States, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Unlike Fort Worth, which has been a hotspot for development in recent years, Dallas has struggled to make itself a destination town for builders, in part due to the City’s commercial permit turnaround times under City Manager T.C. Broadnax.
Disclaimer: Premier Development is a subsidiary of a firm whose chairman, Monty J. Bennett, is the publisher of The Dallas Express.
