Detroit demolition company OK'd to bid on city work after inspector general investigation

Detroit’s Inspector General has concluded that a demolition company that was once under investigation for questionable business conduct is again eligible to bid on city work.

Inspector General Ellen Ha suspended Inner City Contracting on June 21 to determine whether the company fraudulently obtained documentation to be awarded Detroit Based Business (DBB), Detroit Small Business (DSB), and Detroit Headquartered Business (DHB) certifications, which offer advantages in the bidding process. Based on the evidence Ha analyzed, the Office of Inspector General announced Tuesday that the contractor is eligible to have its bids again be considered by the city.

“Ensuring honesty and integrity does not mean that we find abuse, waste, fraud, and corruption in every investigation we conduct. It is important that the public, including City contractors, understand and trust that the OIG’s investigative process is fair. However, fairness cannot be achieved without the full cooperation of all parties involved in the investigative process. This investigation serves as a prime example of the value of that cooperation," Ha said in a statement.

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The company handled a significant number of demolitions in Detroit since 2019, including 202 emergency demolition awards and 10 contracts through Proposal N, the city’s $250 million blight removal program, totaling $10,381,434 in business, according to Detroit’s demolition department.

The city prioritizes local contractors for projects under Proposal N.

The investigation and suspensions also had included Inner City's President Curtis Johnson and associates Laura Durocher and Gerald Durocher II. Inner City Contracting has been in business since 2009, according to Johnson, who is looking forward to going back to work and bidding on contracts.

"I believe from the OIG’s perspective, they were respectful. They have a job to do. I didn’t feel any bias. Whenever you're in a legal matter, it's concerning … to be accused of something you know in your heart you didn’t do," Johnson said. "I didn’t purposely do anything, I thought everything was going well, as evidenced, by receiving the certificates every year"certifying them as a local business.

In August 2021, Detroit’s Civil Rights, Inclusion and Opportunity Department requested that Inner City verify its eligibility to receive the business certifications and found that it maintained its Detroit-based business and small business status through its office location and payment of property taxes. But the department could not verify Inner City as a Detroit-headquartered business, which would require an office in the city where its highest-level management staff perform at least 51% of functions.

The civil rights department suspended Inner City’s DHB certification in November 2021 but noted it would not affect any of the contractor’s current projects. On Feb. 24, Council President Mary Sheffield sent a request to the Inspector General to investigate whether Inner City was subverting the rules after she received a tip. The civil rights department deemed Inner City ineligible for two of the certifications in a May 16 letter.

Since then, city council members were conflicted about voting on any contracts for the company, despite their award dates preceding their ineligibility date.

After Ha issued the interim suspensions, the parties began to fully cooperate and provided detailed responses and documents, which were not previously submitted as requested. Inner City also requested an administrative hearing, which was held on July 26.

The full report through the Office of the Inspector General is available online.

A list of contractors debarred from working with the city also is available online.

Dana Afana is the Detroit city hall reporter for the Free Press. Contact: dafana@freepress.com or 313-635-3491. Follow her on Twitter: @DanaAfana

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Inner City Contracting demolition company can bid on Detroit work