Benchmark Construction Company: City Hall gave a big break to a clout-heavy contractor despite accusation of deception

<p>Benchmark Construction, a longtime city contractor, allegedly lied to get water and sewer deals from City Hall by saying it's based in Chicago - and, as a punishment, City Hall's inspector general proposed banning the company from ever again getting another city contract.</p><p>For some companies, such debarment can be a death knell. Benchmark, which actually is based in the suburbs, has been involved in $1 billion in city infrastructure projects since 2002, records show.</p><p>But, rather than accept the proposed penalty from City Hall <a class="Link" href="https://igchicago.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/OIG-Quarterly-Report-Third-Quarter-2024.pdf" target="_blank" >Inspector General Deborah Witzburg</a>, Mayor Brandon Johnson's <a class="Link" href="https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/mayor/press_room/press_releases/2024/july/chief-procurement-officer.html" target="_blank" >new procurement chief Sharla D. Roberts</a> gave Benchmark a big break - reaching a settlement on Sept. 25 that allows the company to keep getting city contracts.</p><p>As part of the settlement, Benchmark's president Mark Atkins Sr. agreed to retire - leaving Mark Atkins Jr., his son, in charge of the company that has been involved in 93 city construction projects dating to the tenure of Mayor Richard M. Daley.</p><p>Benchmark also agreed to pay the city $100,000 to help the city's Department of Procurement Services support and promote businesses owned and operated by minorities and/or women.</p><p>And the company will now hire an auditor and an attorney to provide advice on submitting bid packages to City Hall. </p><p>Under the settlement, Benchmark denied "that it violated the DPS Debarment Rules." Originally founded by construction magnate Michael P. Vondra, Benchmark specializes in installation and repairs of water and sewer pipes. </p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center> <div class="Enhancement-item" data-crop=""> <figure class="Figure"><a class="AnchorLink" id="image-730000" name="image-730000"></a> <picture data-crop="medium"> <source type="image/webp" width="490" height="275" data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0cbd5b4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1294x726+0+136/resize/490x275!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fd6%2Fd8%2F6289b40e40958e357b65de262a76%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-1-56-11-pm.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9c908fd/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1294x726+0+136/resize/980x550!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fd6%2Fd8%2F6289b40e40958e357b65de262a76%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-1-56-11-pm.png 2x" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" /> <source width="490" height="275" data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4df6078/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1294x726+0+136/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fd6%2Fd8%2F6289b40e40958e357b65de262a76%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-1-56-11-pm.png" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" /> <img class="Image" alt="Benchmark Construction's Mark Atkins Sr., who is leaving the company as part of a settlement with City Hall." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4df6078/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1294x726+0+136/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fd6%2Fd8%2F6289b40e40958e357b65de262a76%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-1-56-11-pm.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ad925b6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1294x726+0+136/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fd6%2Fd8%2F6289b40e40958e357b65de262a76%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-1-56-11-pm.png 2x" width="490" height="275" data-src="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4df6078/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1294x726+0+136/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fd6%2Fd8%2F6289b40e40958e357b65de262a76%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-1-56-11-pm.png" data-lazy-load="true" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" > </picture> <div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Benchmark Construction's Mark Atkins Sr., who is leaving the company as part of a settlement with City Hall.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>benchmarkconstruction.net</p></div></div> </figure> </div> </div><p>The company "shall not identify itself as a city-based business'' when bidding on city contracts during the next two years, according to the eight-page settlement agreement.</p><p>Benchmark had claimed on five sewer contracts awarded by Mayors Rahm Emanuel and Lori Lightfoot that it was a Chicago-based company, allowing it to have a competitive edge of at least 4% on those contracts.</p><p>But city records show that most of the employees were assigned to Benchmark's office in Bartlett.</p><p>"The contractor made these misrepresentations to obtain a bidding advantage on infrastructure contracts of significant value - specifically, the contractor was awarded all five contracts, which were collectively valued over $50 million," the inspector general wrote in a report.</p><div class="RelatedList Enhancement" data-module data-align-center> <div class="RelatedList-title">Related</div> <ul class="RelatedList-items"> <li class="RelatedList-items-item"> <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2016/6/20/18381817/company-once-accused-of-being-minority-front-gets-407m-more" target="_blank" >Company once accused of being minority front gets $407M more</a> </li> </ul> </div> <p>Witzburg accused the company of "making false statements to obtain a bid . . . using false statements to obtain some benefit . . . . falsely claiming to be eligible for the Chicago Business Preference."</p><p></p><p>Ryan Gage, the mayor's procurement department spokesman, defended the handling of Benchmark, saying the chief procurement officer is allowed to reach settlement agreements to resolve debarment proceedings, "which is not unprecedented in instances where vendors are open to corrective actions that address underlying conduct. </p><p></p><p>"Initial debarment proceedings were started under the previous CPO and continued under the current administration," Gage said. "The vendor negotiated in good faith with DPS and agreed to take corrective actions that addressed the offending behavior and will safeguard against future violations. This ensures that the vendor will be accountable as a good partner to the city going forward."</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center> <div class="Enhancement-item" data-crop=""> <figure class="Figure"><a class="AnchorLink" id="image-d60000" name="image-d60000"></a> <picture data-crop="medium"> <source type="image/webp" width="490" height="275" data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/52046f8/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1422x798+0+75/resize/490x275!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F08%2F83%2F12b679334b1ab81196aeafddb3dd%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-2-04-41-pm.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/34ca7b8/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1422x798+0+75/resize/980x550!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F08%2F83%2F12b679334b1ab81196aeafddb3dd%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-2-04-41-pm.png 2x" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" /> <source width="490" height="275" data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/999b3e6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1422x798+0+75/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F08%2F83%2F12b679334b1ab81196aeafddb3dd%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-2-04-41-pm.png" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" /> <img class="Image" alt="Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/999b3e6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1422x798+0+75/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F08%2F83%2F12b679334b1ab81196aeafddb3dd%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-2-04-41-pm.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/77b6d16/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1422x798+0+75/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F08%2F83%2F12b679334b1ab81196aeafddb3dd%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-2-04-41-pm.png 2x" width="490" height="275" data-src="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/999b3e6/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1422x798+0+75/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F08%2F83%2F12b679334b1ab81196aeafddb3dd%2Fscreenshot-2024-10-15-at-2-04-41-pm.png" data-lazy-load="true" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" > </picture> <div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg.</p></figcaption><span c