G & S Paving

So I read all the fantastic reviews G&S Paving had and decided to have them remove and replace an existing sinking driveway in our hotel. Forest came out for the initial estimate of $13,775.00 and he was nice. We had made an arrangement with the owner (Jerry Stanley the actual owner) for the employees to have complimentary hotel rooms if they needed to stay overnight to finish up the following morning because they were coming from Oakley, CA and we are located in the heart of Silicon Valley. First, they arrived a little over an hour late from the 9 AM scheduled start time which was understandable because of the early morning commuter traffic. However, I did notify them this was a time-sensitive project in advance because there is only one entrance to the hotel and customers need to be able to get in late afternoon to check-in and park; so the earlier they can start the better. After working for 4 hours, Jerry, who is onsite as well, sends one his employees to my office to let me know that we will need traffic control, which is an additional $2,750 and consisted of 3 slow down signs, some cones placed around the last lane of our street, and one employee monitoring with a stop sign. This “Cal Tran Spec Traffic Control” is there method for ripping customers off. Forest never mentioned anything about it during the initial estimate so we did not think it was needed. I went outside to speak with Jerry, who was sitting in his truck, to try and work something out since the need for "Traffic Control" was never mentioned to us and we felt that the additional cost of this "traffic control" made our final proposal cost ludicrous. Jerry gave me two options: 1) Take responsibility of traffic control and if “someone dies or there is an accident it is on you.” His actual words to me… 2) Pay. Then he goes on a tangent about how he does not care about money which was a little hysterical along with unrelated personal family issues. The manner in which he spoke to me was extremely unprofessional and rude. He may be going through something but customers should still be treated respectfully. I ended up paying for the traffic control because I just wanted the driveway to be completed ASAP. They finished around 6:15 PM. Jerry did not bother asking about the rooms when they were done and left knowing I would no longer provide them complimentary rooms. I just wish the owner would have been willing to work something out or had outlined the need for traffic control at our hotel prior to the acceptance of the contract and 4 hours into the job. If you choose G&S make sure you know exactly what you are paying for and make sure you do not need traffic control or any other expense not outlined after signing the bid. The seal coat for the driveway was also an additional $1,750, which I did not end up doing. His employees are really great though and the driveway actually turned out okay, 17 k later. Had Jerry, the owner, been reasonable and worked something out with me, this would be a 5 star review.

Home Advisor gave me a list of paving contractors. Of the five who contacted me, Jerry was the only person who was fair and honest with his bid. Everyone else wanted me to "adopt them" and pay unreasonable rates for their services. I highly recommend this company. I live in Los Angeles and finding a company up in Northern Ca was a struggle. Nice to know honest contractors still exist.

They have been in business for a long time and gets job done