Nearly five years after filing a civil lawsuit against the village of Lisle, a jury has awarded Lombard-based Tires ’N‘ Tracks Inc. more than $900,000, alleging breach of contract on a sanitary sewer.

“Do I think it was a fair decision? No,” said Charles Cohen, owner of Tires ’N‘ Tracks. “Did justice prevail? Yes.”

Cohen said he was looking for a settlement of $1.2 million to break even. He declined to comment on if he was going to seek an appeal for further damages.

Attorney James Dash of Chicago-based Much Shelist, Tires ’N‘ Tracks found layers of rock that were not revealed in the original contract — what Dash called “differing site conditions.”

The village of Lisle gave the company that go-ahead to continue the work with the additional expenses being added. When the work was completed, the village did not pay for the extra work, and a lawsuit was filed in June 2003.

“The village admitted that Tires ’N‘ Tracks encountered differing site conditions but still had not made the payment that is required by the law,” Dash said.

The award includes the approximately $140,000 still due on the original contract.

Dash relied on the Illinois Public Construction Contract Act, which requires governmental bodies in the state to adjust the contract price when differing site conditions are properly reported and the government allows the construction to continue.

“This shows that the Public Construction Contract Act is alive and well and that villages and government units need to understand the decision to move forward when differing site conditions are found,” Dash said.

The trial took part in two phases and lasted nearly two weeks. The first part of the trial was a liability, and the second was a damages phase. Dash said he wasn’t sure what to tell his client when jurors took about two hours to decide on the amount of $914,222.22.

“When you have a guy whose business is at stake, you don’t want to cause unnecessary concern,” he said. “The fact of the matter is a jury can do pretty much anything it wants within the bounds of the law.”

Jerry Sprecher, village manager of Lisle, said he was extremely disappointed with the verdict.

“We think it was a wrong verdict, and we’re not very pleased with it,” he said. “But the trial is over, and we have to move on.”

Specher said the village is also looking into an appeal before the May 29 deadline.