Controversy has hit Taipei City Government Department of Urban Development Commissioner Lin Jou-min (林洲民) following revelations of a lawsuit targeting the Chung-kuan architecture firm (仲觀聯合建築師事務所) he headed before joining the Taipei City Government.
The Chinese-language Next Magazine published a report saying that Lin’s firm has been embroiled in a lawsuit over money owed to contractors for the construction of three office buildings the firm designed.
The article quoted the contractor as alleging that the buildings’ construction had run seriously over budget under Lin’s management, ultimately resulting in Chung-kuan failing to pay out NT$80 million (US$2.5 million) owed to the firm. The contractor also alleged that Lin’s impractical designs were the major reason for the budget overruns, questioning his qualification to manage city development projects. One of the buildings, the China Times Building (時報大樓), won the German iF award for design excellence.
Next Magazine reported that while Lin had resigned from his position as head of the firm before taking office, the position had been taken up by relatives and the office space continued to be listed under his name.
Lin said he was a “victim,” adding that his firm had experienced difficulty in paying contractors after new owners took over China Times Corp, which said the buildings failed to honor an oral agreement of the previous leadership.
While Chung-kuan had been able to reach an agreement with all other contractors, there was a disagreement with the contractor in question over the true cost of its projects. He added that he had a good understanding of finances and would fulfill his responsibilities as a city official, even as he faces up to the “unfortunate incident” from his past work in the private sector.
The Chung-kuan architecture firm could not be reached for comment.
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