Collapsing porch, flooded basement lead to judgment order against Wichita contractor

A Wichita contractor has been ordered to pay more than $171,000 after his work on a couple’s house fell apart and he stopped responding to their concerns, according to court records.

The couple were worried about their front porch collapsing and pulling away from the house as well as repeated flooding in the basement.

A judge made the order against Robert Bryan, who was doing work under Finest Construction, in June after he didn’t respond to court orders. The money includes $50,454.50 to the couple who were affected, $120,000 for violations of the Kansas Consumer Protection Act and other court-related fees.

Bryan could not be reached for comment.

Someone who answered a number associated with the business Tuesday morning said they used to work for Bryan and would pass along a message. When asked their name, the person said “umm” and then hung up.

Bryan’s violations of the consumer act include not being licensed or having permits to do the work. In January, Bryan “organized a new Limited Liability Company, Nathan Fine Construction LLC,” court records show.

Here is what court records say happened:

The Wichita couple, who are older than 60, contacted Bryan in March 2021 after he was recommended to them by their real estate agent. They asked him about fixing a leaky foundation.

Bryan said there would be a 25-year warranty on the work.

The couple paid him more than $50,000, including $2,812 to build an external staircase and “paint walls and trim around the additional door,” court records say. He never did the staircase.

“Defendant dug a trench around the front of the (couple’s) home, and replaced the wood front porch with a concrete one,” court records say.

For months in 2022, after the work he did started to fall apart, Bryan told them he would fix it, but then eventually stopped responding to texts.

He did respond to the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office once an investigation was started.

Bryan said “that heavy rains were an act of God beyond his control and that the (couple) needed to accept some of the risks,” court records say, but then he stopped responding to the legal requests.

A licensed engineer inspecting the issue said that the “most likely cause of the current ongoing settlement problems was improper compaction and voids in the fill material below the porch slab,” court records say.

The engineer recommended the work be redone. The couple hired a contractor to do the work for about $10,600.

This story was originally published June 25, 2024 at 1:10 PM.