C.E. Landscaping, Inc.

This review is long but is needed so people can be aware of C.E. Landscaping LLC and its owner, Ray [redacted]. The owner, Ray [redacted], conducted bad business. We spent a lot of money and we were left with a lot of uncompleted and poorly completed projects. We had several emails, face-to-face conversations, texts and phone calls with Ray to try to get our projects completed. After 6 weeks of a deck project, we finally had to bring in another company for resolution. Ray stated he would shut down C.E. Landscaping and have another business open before we could get any money out of the company. Ray stated he runs an LLC for a reason and would due business under another name so beware of him using another company name.

Agreement #1
We executed this agreement on September 7th 2016. The scope of the initial project included:
1. Tree Removal: Cut down & disposal of 40ft area in rear of house.
2. Grading & Re-Sloping: Grade & pitch area noted above as well as slope at rear drive-way & under deck. Level for Rock-Bed.
3. Ground Cover/Seed: Over seed w/ Fescue for graded area.
4. Shrubbery: remove & replace shrubbery in front of house with agreed upon land­ coverings.
5. Masonry: Cut and pour concrete steps w/ montage railing, Add border to Front of house, back of house & correct front of house curb
6. Borders: Add borders (Non-Masonry) to Front of House (Left) and Garage Area

As of November 29th 2016, Agreement #1 has been fully funded, however, the following items have yet to be completed:

1. Shrubbery: We requested, on numerous, occasions that additional rocks be added to each of the Flower Beds and has yet to be completed. In addition, the project included the removal of the existing plantings, which should have included the stumps/roots. The stumps/roots were not removed and now the old shrubbery is growing.
2. Ground Cover/Seed: Due to several staff members parking in the back-yard, all the Seed & Straw has been displaced. I notified you on this matter and you corrected it on October 17th however, the very next day the team parked in the yard. And the seed & straw have been displaced.
3. Tree Removal: We've communicated with you several times about the metal posts that remain in the cleared area. All debris was supposed to be removed, prior to the land being graded & seeded.
4. Masonry: In the original agreement, you stated that you would be able to repair the Front Curb. After executing the agreement, you informed me that you would not be able to correct it; however, I was not given any credit for that scope of work.

Agreement #2

We executed this agreement on September 30th, 2016; albeit, the team had started removing deck boards on the 29th. The scope of the project included:

1. Decking: Removal/disposal of all floorboards & handrails on Deck & Stairs. Install new deck flooring with patterned design (Grade#l Lumber) & custom handrails (Metal/Aluminum). Add Deck Section and appropriate posts.
2. Staining: Stain Deck, Stairway, & Patio with Behr Deck-Over.
3. Under-Gutters: Install based on design approved by client.
4. Rock-Beds: Install under Deck & behind 3 HVAC Units on side of home.
5. Pressure Washing: Pressure wash entire exterior of home, including front walkway, & porch.
6. Gutters: Power blow gutters around entire home.

The following items have yet to be completed and/or are beyond repair and need to be completely replaced:

1. Deck: When we entered into this agreement, we both determined that the Foundation of the Deck was structurally sound and did not need to be replaced. We confirmed the integrity of the structural frame from another Landscaping Company, prior to our engagement. At commencement of the work by your team on September 29th, we were informed that the entire project would only require a week or two. As of November 10th the project was not completed and the foundation was compromised. At the commencement of the work, Ray informed us the project would only require a week or two. After 6 weeks the project was still in process. We talked on several occasions, with Ray, and he agreed to remedy the situation; however, weeks elapsed without resolution. Below is a recap of the chain of events:
• September 29th: deck demolition started
• October 4th: new flooring started
• October 11th: you were informed that the deck floor spacing was incorrect and you agreed. You brought in some additional support on October 14th to remove the floorboards and space them correctly.
• October 17th: We spoke with Ray about the spacing between the deck boards again, he concurred that it needed to be addressed and that he would come-up with a plan.
• October 19th: An email was sent with the concerns pertaining to the deck and the open items from agreement #1.
• October 19th: Ray called requesting some funds due to a family emergency. We reluctantly agreed to fund the $2K despite all the issues with the project. We felt if we did not fund the money, the project would not be completed. Ray agreed that he would remedy all issues within a week.
• October 21st: We meet with Ray at our home to discuss the status of the projects. Ray was informed at this point, that he has made a lot of promises to complete the project and had not come through. Ray reassured us that he would get the project completed to the agreement specifications. Ray agreed to meet with us on October 22nd to discuss his plan of action. We did not see or hear from Ray on October 22nd.
• October 24th: Ray reached out to us to inform us that the person whom incorrectly installed the deck flooring and railing would be continuing with the project (Gary) and that you would give him a couple days.
• October 26th: Ray contacted us to discuss the project. We informed Ray that the quality of work was not sufficient and we needed someone to complete the project properly.
• October 27th: We discussed bringing out a Deck company in­order for us to get the project to closure. You selected [redacted] with [redacted] LLC in order for you to sub-contract the work.
• October 31st: We met with Barry from [redacted] LLC. We walked through the current status of the deck project and the appropriate solutions to complete the project. Barry informed us the reason for the issues with the flooring was due to the type of materials utilized. He looked at the deck boards and rail system and neither were to the specifications that were within the Agreement (Grade# 1). He also looked at the structural integrity of the eeck and recommended replacement.
• In the interim period of the project not going accordingly to plan, we've had 3 Decking companies come-out to review the current structure and rebid the project. Each of these companies concurred that the Structural Foundation had been compromised due to the splintering of the wood from multiple nails insert & extractions. The majority of the nails were not inserted correctly into the joust.
• October 31st: We spoke with Ray about the feedback from his sub-contractor ([redacted] about the integrity of the structure. Ray conceded that he needed to move this project forward and that he would talk with Barry about options. Ray subsequently sent us a text stating that an additional cost of $3000 would be required to address the deck foundation.
• November 1st: We called Ray to discuss the additional cost and our disagreement with us paying the full $3000 for the foundation. We also informed Ray that Agreement #2 would need to be amended to hold [redacted] liable for the procurement of materials, disposal and rebuilding of the deck with the same specifications as in our agreement. Ray said that he would talk it over with [redacted] and get back to us.
• November 2nd: We returned Ray's call to discuss the process for moving forward with [redacted] We informed Ray, that we would not make any additional payments for this project until completion. Ray thought this was unreasonable and hung up the phone in anger. We informed you, via text message, that we needed a resolution by November 3rd.


Ray claimed he had a state inspector come to inspect the foundation of our deck. Ray claimed the state inspector found noting wrong with the foundation. We requested a letter from the state inspector stating there were no issues with the foundation, which Ray said he would provide. We never received this letter from Ray and Ray has not had any more communication with us. We had to hire another company to build our deck.