The city of Charlotte has paid the EpiCentre developer more than $1.6 million for sidewalks and other upgrades around the uptown complex.

But Fulcrum Construction of Atlanta, the contractor that installed the sidewalks and planted trees, says it was never paid for that work.

Now Fulcrum must finish the job out of pocket or risk losing a $200,000 bond it posted at developer Afshin Ghazi's request, said Fulcrum owner and President Mike Arasin.

"We're faced with being forced to do that work and nobody's going to pay us," Arasin said.

The center's lender, Regions Bank, started foreclosure proceedings last month, saying developers had stopped paying on a $90 million loan in December. Since then, Ghazi has put the project into bankruptcy protection to stop the bank from taking over. Ghazi has also sued the bank, saying it did not keep its promise to modify the loan, a claim the bank denies.

Ghazi said Thursday Fulcrum has not been paid because Regions stopped giving him money in May 2009.

This week, the bank asked the bankruptcy judge to appoint someone to examine the EpiCentre's books, saying certain spending was "suspicious." Among its concerns: millions of dollars paid to insiders, including companies Ghazi controlled.

Documents released in bankruptcy court provide details into the EpiCentre's spending dating to July 2008, including more than $40,000 on choice tickets for Charlotte Bobcats games and the Carolina Panthers' Gridiron Club.

The bank also questioned how Ghazi transferred the city's most recent payment from the EpiCentre to a separate liability company that the bank says Ghazi controls.

The city plans to pay Ghazi the final $550,000 installment next summer as long as the EpiCentre remains at least half leased, said Jamie Banks, a spokeswoman for the city's Neighborhood and Business Services.

Banks said it's not the city's responsibility to ensure subcontractors get paid.

"Our contract is with (Ghazi)," she said. "We are only contractually obligated with him."

Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx said Thursday the city's attorneys told him the city isn't liable if subcontractors aren't paid.

When asked if the city could help the subcontractors, Foxx said he didn't think that was possible.

The EpiCentre sits on the site of the old convention center, which was abandoned for years. City officials have viewed it as an important part of uptown's redevelopment. Bars and restaurants at the 300,000-square-foot complex report weekends are packed.

To help make the project happen, the city promised in 2004 to pay Ghazi $2.2 million upon the project's completion to reimburse Ghazi for upgrades, including the sidewalks.

In 2008, the city agreed, at Ghazi's request, to pay him the money in installments. The city has so far paid Ghazi three payments of $550,000. The final payment is due in June 2011.

"No other developer would touch this project with a 10-foot pole," Ghazi said Thursday. "We were the only ones willing to take on the risk associated with redeveloping that entire city block."

Fulcrum Construction filed a lien against the EpiCentre in July asking for more than $409,000 for sidewalk improvements and related work. The company says it is owed $3.5 million in all for work done at the complex, according to court documents.

Ghazi says in court documents that Fulcrum is owed $1.28 million.

Fulcrum could be forced to pay an additional $40,000 because it is expected to finish a final piece of sidewalk along East Trade Street. Fulcrum, along with a Ghazi-controlled holding company, posted a $200,000 bond with the city, promising to finish the work.

The sidewalk was left unfinished because of plans for a residential condo tower.

Had the tower been built, the sidewalk would have had to be torn out. The condo developer, a separate company unrelated to Ghazi, has since liquidated.

Banks, the city's spokeswoman, said if the sidewalk isn't finished by June 2011 and the condo tower isn't being built, the city will revoke the bond held against Fulcrum and Ghazi's holding company.

She said that even if the city wanted to withhold the final payment of $550,000 to ensure Fulcrum were paid, the city could not because of its agreement.

Located along the light rail line and near Time Warner Cable Arena, the EpiCentre has struggled to lease more than 63,000 square feet of office space but has filled most of its 250,000 square feet of retail.

More than 40 lawsuits have been filed against the EpiCentre and its developers since 2008, most from companies claiming they haven't been paid for work.

Ghazi told the Observer last year that he had paid his bills and that the contractor he hired, Advanced Construction and Consulting, failed to pay its subcontractors.

ACC, in turn, claimed the EpiCentre owed it money. ACC liquidated last fall.

Staff researcher Marion Paynter contributed.