Morningstar Construction

Review: It is now August 2015. In October 2014 I paid $20,550 to Morningstar Construction for a concrete driveway, stairs, walkway, and stone walls, and the result is falling apart before my eyes. I wish I could attach photos to this complaint to illustrate the current condition of things. Below is quoted my final letter to Morningstar Construction attempting to obtain resolution in this matter, which summarizes what has happened and what Kerry H[redacted], owner of Morningstar, promised to do about it. To this date I have received no contact from Mr. H[redacted] since speaking with him in March 2015. Needless to say, Monringstar Construction did not reply to this letter either.

"Kerry H[redacted],

This is my third letter regarding the deteriorating driveway and wall situation with which you have left me. I gave you over $20,000 for this job and I absolutely did not get what I paid for. The work now appears to be decades old, instead of just months. You pressured me to pay you early without ever offering a good reason why, which I did despite the terms of our contract because I believed then that you would do things right. And, as I stated in my last letters, to this day I have not really used the driveway, I didn’t want to allow any chance that its condition could be attributed to use or abuse, so I am still left parking in the street.

In my previous letters, I sent you many photos detailing exactly what has gone wrong.

I paid for a concrete colorant to match a brown of the house stone. What I got is a mottled, splotchy, uneven, discolored mess that looks nothing like I was led to expect, and comes no where close to matching the quality of the samples you advertise for such a colorant treatment. You admitted that you agreed with this assessment.

The surface of the concrete is crazed and cracking off in large areas, which are growing. Cracks several feet long are developing and spreading in the slab. Edges are chipping. It is a disaster that is only going to get worse. Again, you admitted that you agreed with this assessment.

The wall was assembled with several unnecessarily large and unsightly gaps between stones through which backfill gravel is spilling out. I pointed out these gaps to you at the time of construction and you assured me that nothing like this would happen. It seems that you were incorrect, as over time backfill gravel is indeed constantly falling out through the gaps.

All of the uncertainty about fixing these problems has held up plans for the house. I have been unable to do various projects because I expect that my efforts will likely be dug up and ruined by any corrective work done.

After my first letter back in March, you phoned to say that you believed you knew the cause of some of the problems, something about a freeze, that you would stop by to go over things with me, and promised that Morning Star would do whatever it takes to make it right, up to and including redoing the entire job.

Spring has passed, months have gone by, and we’re now headed towards Fall. In all that time I have not seen or heard a single word from you. You have left me hanging with no idea of when, or even if, a fix will really happen.

As neighborhood folks passed by my house they would ask, “What’s going on with the situation, when would it be taken care of?” I used to support you, telling them that you promised to come back to make it right. As the months passed by, I had nothing new to say, and all I could answer was that I no longer had any idea what would happen, if anything at all. Folks are still asking and it’s all turned into an embarrassment and a bad joke.

I have tried to reach out to you, have sent you more correspondence, more photos of the continued deterioration, and more emails and phone messages asking for some idea of when you will keep your word. You have disregarded every attempt at communication, leaving me with little choice but to conclude that it is deliberate. If I do not hear from you by the time I receive the receipt for this letter I will have to believe that your intentions to completely ignore this matter are clear."Desired Settlement: I want Morningstar Construction to keep their word and do whatever is necessary to make things right, or to receive a full refund.