Outdoor Living Pave Pros

Description of Work: Hired for pavers and landscape lighting.

Description of Work: paver patio, retaining wall, landscaping, drainage correction, power wash existing deck

Description of Work: Remove existing concrete sidewalks in front and backyard Lay new flagstone patio in backyard Lay new decorative paver sidewalk in front yard Install french drains on side of house Install stone dry river bed staircase around side of house

Description of Work: We had seen them at one of the Louisville home shows last year (2011) and at that time had them (Lincoln Grant and Allen Zetko) out to discuss installation of walkways and a patio. We had had some other landscapers out too to get bids and see what they recommended. After learning how expensive the work would be, we decided to hold off until we could afford it. This fall we contacted Lincoln Grant re: landscape design and install. He and partner, Allen Zetko came the next day (Sun) and we discussed the plan. We gave them $5,000 down and agreed that we would purchase all the materials. Allen came w/plan but after we told him we could not move the generator to another location, he and Lincoln designed another plan. Allen brought it out and said it would cost additional money but would include everything – plants too He told me about John Deere landscaping and said that if I wanted I could even go there and pick out the individual plants myself. He had me use his computer to look up.some of the plants to see what they looked like.. We agreed to the plan and paid Allen another $2750. He said they would start on Friday but rain prevented it. He said they would start Tuesday but did not show. Gave a story about working on a pool job. Said they’d be there for sure on Weds at 9:30 but no one came. At 3pm some men came and did a little work for 3 hours and left. Allan came and apologized, talked about lights. He gave me the Wolf Creek website and told me to go there and pick out the path lights I wanted. I couldn’t see pictures on that site so he said to go to Lighting Direct and look at Kichler lights. I picked out 2 – first and second choices. First was 15314 ($140 each) and second was 15328 at around $80 each. I told him that whatever he could get within the $1800 lighting budget would be fine. Allen said he would try to get my first choice and asked for another $2,000 to pay cash for lights (said he would get a better deal.) I gave him the $2,000 check. Allen said that the next day he would come and use marking paint to mark the exact location of all the features on the plan. Thurs the men came about 10 and began working. Allen came later and painted some very rough lines where the seating walls and columns would go. I talked to him about the design as the cut-out and markings did not match the plan drawing. Allen kept saying it did and showed me a sloppy drawing of a similar plan, but not the one we signed up for. I kept pointing out the differences in the cutout from the plan and kept getting 'stories' from Allen (ie, first admitting that the column he painted in the middle of the patio was in fact a mistake, and then later saying it was a reference to show that the column really is supposed to go somewhere else where there was nothing drawn. He also said that even though it looked like the columns didn’t line up, the pool and firepit areas weren’t really half-circles like the plan showed, “it is all geometry” and that some (invisible) line somewhere had to balance with some other (invisible) line somewhere. He assured me the patio would look like the picture when it was done. After Allen left James was cutting out for the rock, I told him that the lines that were marked weren’t accurate and that he might want to make the cutout larger to avoid having to redo things. He said that the lines didn’t look like the plan because we only had so much square footage and that if I wanted it larger than what was marked, I should probably buy more pavers! I called Lincoln and asked him to please come and mark the lines so the guys would know where to put things, since he was the designer and the guys didn’t seem to know how to translate a plan into reality. He said he would but later Allen called and said that Lincoln isn’t coming. He talked to my husband awhile and said the design would look like the picture when it was done. Friday James marked the pool and firepit areas and asked me what I thought. I pointed out how it didn’t correspond to the plan and he said he could make the areas larger (per the plan) but that the columns wouldn’t line up like they do on the plan. I told him I was more concerned w/having enough room for the pool and the firepit than the symmetry of the column placement. He changed it and finally the patio border looked much more like the plan. I thanked him profusely and he said they were ready to go ahead. Allen came later and took credit for how the layout looked (“see, I told you it would be great!”), even though he had nothing to do with it, and then asked for $1600+ “to meet payroll.” I told him that I had already paid them $10,000 plus paying for all the materials and asked what he did w/that. He said he had to pay to get the equipment to the job site and “other expenses.” He said that he had spent $3100+ on lighting. I told him again that I had not expected him to do that and that if the lights I picked out were too expensive, that he could go w/the less expensive ones (which he had said were well within the budget.) He said that he really had wanted to get me the lights I wanted. When I pressed him he admitted he had paid other bills w/it and doesn’t have enough to meet payroll. I told him that he needed to come up w/a way to handle that because I wouldn’t pay any more until the job is done. Allen cornered my husband and tried for 30 minutes to get money out of him. He did tell my husband that he used $4500 of our money to pay for the upcoming trade show in Louisville. My husband told him that it was his decision how to use the money we paid him but that he agreed with me not to pay more until the job was done. Then Lincoln called and again asked for money to meet payroll. I told him that Allen has lost my trust – that he has told me he would come, hasn’t showed, that when the crew showed, they worked from 3pm – 6pm, then Allen asked for more money. Then that Allen had given me sample pavers which were the tumbled pavers, but had ordered non-tumbled pavers for our job. I knew the non-tumbled pavers cost less money, which would give them more profit. I said that I did not ask that the savings in the cost of the pavers be passed on to me, but said I had agreed to the $29,000 price for the job and was ok w/them making extra profit. However, I would not pay another dime until the work was done. That when the job was done, I would give them a check that they could cash within the hour. I went to visit my sister and Greg stayed at home. He said Allen and Lincoln came out together w/Lincoln’s granddaughter and asked for money again. When during the conversation Greg again asked what they had done w/the $10,000 that we had already paid them, Lincoln’s granddaughter looked at Lincoln and exclaimed, “Ten thousand dollars!?! What did you do with that???” Even Lincoln’s granddaughter could see our point. Sunday they worked and we agreed to give them $1100 to meet payroll and Allen told Greg that it would be the LAST payment he would need until the job is done. Tuesday Allen asked for another $2000 “to get everything I need to finish this job” and because he had spent more than $3,000 on lighting (despite the fact that I told him to go w/my second choice if the cost of my first choice would be too much.) I gave him the $2,000 and thought that would be it. Allen has promised a number of things and has not delivered – he will routinely say one thing and not follow through or deny that he even said it. Friday he came and asked for $3200 “to meet payroll.” I told him I’m not going to pay more until the job is done. He asked to talk to Greg. Greg told him that we had already paid him $2000 AFTER the $1100 “final payment until the job is done.” He said we will not pay him anymore until the job is done. Allen told Greg that the $2,000 was for “materials.” Greg reminded him that Allen had said that nothing else would be needed and that he was going to hold Allen to his word. Allen told Greg that the plants were not included – even though I had specifically asked Allen when he first brought the revised plan and he had told me that yes, the whole thing, including plants – was included. He had even told me that I could go to John Deere landscaping and pick out the plants myself. Lincoln called and said that the plants were not included. When we told him what Allen had said, he agreed to ‘eat’ the cost of the plants. He said that he would want to do the bare minimum and that we would want the maximum, but I right away said that we will accept the bare minimum because he did not know that Allen had committed the plants as well. He agreed to come out and talk more about it. Much heated conversation, but Greg felt sorry for the workers who, Lincoln and Allen said would not be able to buy Christmas presents for their children and families. We gave them $3150 cash in return for a signed agreement to finish the work and not ask for more money until the job is done. We both feel emotionally exhausted. As far as what got done today (12/21/12) – a couple of guys spent between 15-20 minutes cleaning up the worksite and the rest of the time sitting in the truck w/the engine running. Allen said Lincoln would be here tomorrow between 9-9:30 w/the pavers. He said he would come at the same time and get the guys going w/their work and then would leave to pick up our fountain and bring it back. We just want the job done right and for them to leave.