Christian Sauvage, one of the architects of the Cristal Park project, is demanding payment of invoices totalling €360,000 from Spaque, a public company for depollution. Sauvage had worked for over a decade on the project, designing plans, models and obtaining permits, for which he won an international prize, but he has not been paid in full for his work. He is owed a total of €700,000 and has been forced to sell his assets to cover his costs. His lawyer, Thibault Swennen, states that Sauvage was unfairly treated in relation to the Cristal Park project and that it is unlikely any money can be recovered. Sauvage claims that he is entitled to payment from La Spaque as they had agreed to pay him, however, La Spaque dispute this claim and argue that they did not commit to paying him.
One of the architects of Cristal Park, Christian Sauvage, claims before the company court of Liège that invoices for 360,000 euros be paid to him. It is at Spaque, a public company for depollution, that he claims this money.
Plans, models, permit files, the architect Christian Sauvage worked for more than ten years on the project, until obtaining an international prize… without managing to get paid for everything. In total, it is 700 thousand euros that we owe him. Because of this story, this architect had to put his heritage up for sale. “When we count on two million fees, we invest to deal with it, in equipment and human resources” comments the architect “and we focus on it rather than looking for other markets”.
“Monsieur Sauvage was cheated in the framework of Cristal Park” explique son avocat Thibault Swennen. “Like a number of other people, he was never paid for his services. The money has evaporated and there is very little chance of recovering money from the guardianship, in my opinion. “
If the architect claims his money from La Spaque, it is because it had undertaken to pay him, explains the architect’s lawyer. La Spaque, according to its lawyers, has on the contrary committed itself to nothing and it is not up to it to pay.
In conclusion, the story of architect Christian Sauvage highlights the unfortunate reality of payment disputes in the construction industry. Despite winning international recognition for his work on Cristal Park, Sauvage is still owed a significant amount of money for his services. This has not only impacted his financial stability but also his ability to focus on new projects. While he continues to pursue his case in court, it remains to be seen whether he will receive the full payment owed to him. This serves as a warning to all involved in the construction industry to ensure fair payment practices are in place to avoid similar situations in the future.
