I had a rickety deck on a rental home that needed to be replaced. Cardinal Construction had the lowest and most detailed bid. They took care of everything from getting the permit, demolishing the old deck, putting up a new deck build to code. I never had to step foot on the jobsite. I was given photos and where the project was just about every day. I am super pleased with the new deck. read more

Fair pricing, professional high-quality work. Owner Mel is quick to respond and listens to your needs. No hidden costs. Her people are hard-working, professional, respectful and polite, and they clean up! I would wholeheartedly recommend her for any project and would use her again for future work. read more

What are you looking for in a local contractor? After several failed attempts with others, we found Cardinal Construction - Mel Dion is the GC, 831 476-4144. We were looking for a contractor who: Showed up when they said they would , returned calls in a timely manner; Presented a Reasonable, detailed, and complete bid, and later a thorough legal contract; Gave a schedule of starting and completion dates; Had a crew of skilled workers who completed the tasks to a high level of workmanship; Kept us informed throughout the work progress; and most importantly - completed the remodel on time and on budget. I honestly think we could not possibly have found a better contractor. read more

Never us this company. Very bad workmanship as i have to tell the staff what to do. Overall the staff did not have the expertise to do the job read more

Mel and her team at Cardinal are fantastic ! I had a recent remodel done at my house and was pleasantly surprised by the timeliness, respect and efficiency of the team. It can be tough to turn your house over to a crew during the time of renovations, but Cardinal was top notch during this period of time . I appreciated the communication, attention to detail and precision of the final work upon completion of the job . I would highly recommend Cardinal Construction for your home renovation needs! read more

I feel compelled to write my first negative review of anyone, hoping it will prevent others from experiencing the stress of working with Mel Dion and her main employee, John, of Cardinal Construction. We hired Mel to remodel our guest bathroom. From the beginning John was rude and arrogant. When I spoke to Mel about his behavior, she said she had heard similar complaints from other customers but felt "he was so good he was worth it." A few days into the job Mel told us John could not use our ceramic tile for the shower floor (which we had shown her before the project began), because it was too thin. At this point it was too late to return the tile. We consulted 4 other professional tile contractors who all had the same reaction as if reading from the same script. They could not see any problem with the tile; they had worked with the same sort of tile on many occasions; they did not understand why John would have any issues using the tile. They all politely commented that John might be a rookie, but even then, they found it puzzling. Mel's response was vindictive and bullying. We told her we needed to have someone else do the tile work, but she was welcome to finish the remodel after it was completed. She told us she would return after we paid her 20% profit and overhead on our tile contractor's fee, and demanded a figure over 3 times the actual amount. When we asked for a breakdown of this amount, she never responded. We went ahead with one of the tile pros who had no issues with installation; and then we had to find someone else to finish the remodel. Mel placed a mechanical lien on our property. She also sent us monthly invoices, each one adding interest to the total. After much time, energy, agony, distress, and education about property liens, I can happily report Mel has removed the lien from our property. This was after a letter from our attorney informed her we would file a complaint, and any fees incurred would be on her. read more

Cardinal Construction and Mel came highly recommended from a long-time family friend that has remodeled several houses. We needed a bathroom remodel after a 2nd floor bathroom leaked. We received a fair bid price. They worked with us to reduce budget where we could. They were also accommodating to any change orders. We have had our share of terrible contractor experiences in Santa Cruz. Our experience with Cardinal Construction was an amazing experience. Our leak is fixed and we have a new, beautiful bathroom. There were 2 very minor issues with the job. Mel was super quick to respond and fix. The entire crew of Cardinal Construction were awesome. They went above and beyond all we had hoped for. In reading the one negative review posted here. Mel would never do what the person said in the review. It was likely a mistaken identify. Mel communicates immediately and answered all questions over email, text, and on the phone. Thanks to all at Cardinal Construction that helped provide an amazing bathroom that we are loving and enjoying daily. If you are looking for a reliable, professional, experienced contractor and crew, go with Cardinal Construction. read more

Asked a quick question prior to being able to ask about their services/quotes and got the door closed in my face.

I had the pleasure of meeting Mel, who appears to be an efficient, reliable contractor. Her quote was detailed, and her scheduling honest and exact. I felt comfortable and in good hands. She took the time to talk and text me with any questions or concerns. Unfortunately, my schedule didn't fit with hers, but I would have love to hire them. I recommend you try them out. read more

Installed windows and did minor electrical work that did not pass code. Wound up in arbitration. Plenty of other fish in the sea...

I hired Mel about three years ago to do a major build out of my office. I was amazed that she came in AT BID. She did an excellent job, and it cost exactly what she said it would cost. I cannot recommend her highly enough. Alisa read more

Mel was the Best. Every one of her crew were top notch! I could trust them all to go above and beyond, and I did more than once. I will have them back in the near future - so in a way I don't want to give away my secret, in case they gets too busy for me. I but I respect them too much to be that selfish. If I could give them more than 5 stars I would! Thank you Cardinal Construction for the outstanding work you did for me! read more

We have a home up in Ben Lomond and have had Cardinal do a number of jobs for us. They always come in for a fair price and get the job done on time and do it right. I highly recommend them!!!! read more

Had some rotting wooden siding on tenant 's dwelling. Tore out, replaced, beautiful job matching paint, cleaned up leaving area cleaner than when they started. Beautiful work. read more

In 2014 we bought our fixer upper home using a HUD 203K loan which is a tightly monitored construction loan that's supervised by a 3rd party so much so, that when I mentioned it most contractors simply walked away not wanting anything to do with it! Mel (Cardinal Construction) on the other hand, was quite knowledgeable and helped us get every possible advantage from the 203K loan. On the job, she was patient and understanding as we chose color schemes, materials and determined kitchen and bathroom layouts. She made sure that all the subcontractors performed their work to code and if not had them do it again. Her guys were neat, professional and generally great guys who did a fabulous job turning our fixer upper into a wonderful home. I can't say enough about Mel's work ethic, patience, flexibility and knowledge, she made a daunting process bearable and we consistently receive compliments on the work she and her crew performed. read more