Threw $4k into a coworking space buildout that never opened

I sunk $4,000 into renovating a small office suite for a coworking space in St. Louis, but the landlord dragged their feet on the HVAC permit for 5 months until I ran out of money and had to walk. Has anyone else dealt with permit delays killing a project before it even started?

3 comments

3 Comments

angelacooper1mo ago

Sean_martin44 I actually did try calling the city permit office after month three and they basically told me "the landlord has to submit the paperwork, not you." So I was just stuck. And David, you're totally right, I should have seen it coming. But you know how it is when you're already $4k deep and you keep thinking "any day now they'll fix it." I was basically playing financial chicken with a landlord who didn't care. My grand plan was to call the space "The Permit Pending" as a joke but turns out that was the only thing that was actually accurate about the whole thing.

sean_martin443mo ago

Did you try filing a complaint with the city permit office directly? That usually gets things moving faster than going through the landlord.

david_adams3mo ago

Wait, hold on. You lost me at "landlord dragged their feet on the HVAC permit." That's the part that gets me. The landlord is the one who owns the building, right? They should have been the one pushing for that permit, not leaving you hanging with four grand in the hole. I mean, I get that cities can be slow, but five months for an HVAC permit? That's insane. I've dealt with building inspectors before and even the worst ones in my town get stuff done in a month tops. Sounds like your landlord just didn't want to spend the money or do the legwork, and they let you eat the cost. That is genuinely messed up and I'm shocked you didn't see it coming sooner.