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Resident urges Hinsdale board to press Fuller Service Center for engineer costs amid bankruptcy filing
Summary
Christine Richards told the HIMSA Board of Trustees that Fuller Service Center Inc.’s bankruptcy filing lists the Village of Hinsdale as a disputed creditor over costs for an independent engineer who reviewed bollard work; village officials said lawyers are pursuing the matter but no formal board action was taken.
Christine Richards, a Hinsdale resident, told the HIMSA Board of Trustees on March 18 that Fuller Service Center Inc. listed the Village of Hinsdale as a disputed creditor in a bankruptcy filing connected to costs the village incurred for an independent engineer overseeing bollard work at Fuller’s business.
Richards said Fuller Service Center paid roughly $1,200,000 in salaries, bonuses and dividends over the past year to family members and transferred other assets, while listing the village as a disputed creditor for an unspecified amount. She said the contested debt relates to an independent engineer the village hired after Fuller’s initial bollard installation failed required testing, and that Fuller previously agreed to pay that engineer but now disputes the obligation.
The matter, Richards said, is time-sensitive because the company is moving assets. She cited documents in a packet provided to trustees showing distributions to family members and an outstanding trade creditor tied to an affiliated Home and Hardware store. Richards said some vehicles tied to the business appear to be receiving temporary plates as they transfer ownership.
Village representatives told the board that village lawyers are handling collection and related bankruptcy procedures and that the village will pursue the claim through appropriate legal channels; the board did not vote or direct additional action at the meeting. No dollar amount for the village claim was specified in the transcript.
Richards commended village staff for pursuing the claim and urged the board to ensure that taxpayers do not cover the cost of the independent engineer. Village staff answered that the village’s legal team is pursuing collection and that the business continues to hold a village-issued business license. The trustees did not take formal action during the public-comment exchange.
Because the matter is in a bankruptcy proceeding, any recovery or timing of payment depends on the court process and trustee decisions; those details were not specified at the meeting.
