D & J Tristate Contracting Inc.

Dom from D&J was good to work with. The project started smoothly but discovered foundation water leak issues that needed to be addressed quickly. He quickly mobilized is workers and equipment and worked late to stop the foundation leaks permanently for a reasonable price. His efforts in discovering the source of this small leak prevented bigger future expenses or worse. I thank him for that and i will use him again in the future.

Things went poorly from the beginning. Mr. Amato disregarded my requests for the looks I was going for and material I wanted used. Just about everything he did had either had to be undone or redone. Most important was the request for bluestone, the material many of us call slate that is used for many city sidewalks. I've wanted a new walkway to my porch made with it. I was concerned when he told me he knew just what to do and that I should trust him in knowing I will love what he has in mind. There was no creativity or doubt in my demand for the walkway to be made of bluestone, in full size slabs across the width of the walkway so I repeated it on several occasions before he began his work. Instead I got something else, some cutesy little rectangular pieces probably made of the same material but not what I wanted. It was a big project to replace the cement foundation he lais so I could get what I wanted. He cemented a grassy area near the sidewalk and cut a piece of the sidewalk bluestone and replaced that with cement both without discussing it with me. Those had to be undone. I told him I wanted a railing for the new steps. He left no space for it and made the steps too small so they had to be redone. I wanted my new front retaining wall a little lower than the old one and the one next to the new walkway level with it, the walkway. I've since paid thousands to someone else to get that done. He did a decent job putting decorative stone on my walls, with each of the walls looking better than the previous one. You can be assured Mr. Amato knows his bricks and cement and will build walls, walkways, and anything structural so that it will last. If you are willing to go along with his suggestions you will be happy. But if you have specific likes that don't match his you will have to watch him constantly. Better to get someone else.