The technical team at Bowman and Williams rescued us from a natural disaster in 2024. A landslide…read morehad devastated part of our hillside and we needed an emergency grading permit to stabilize things before the rainy season. These guys knew what they were doing to save the day and get through all the red tape that County regulators could muster. Professional, punctual, and courteous, I would recommend Ben and his team anytime.

After the 2017-2018 winter storms that resulted in Santa Cruz County California being declared a…read morenational disaster our two-mile county service road providing access to 67 residents suffered several $M in damage as mountains collapsed onto the road and several locations when the road collapsed down the mountain. The county retained Bowman & Williams (B&W) to do preliminary damage evaluations in the disaster area. We were required to obtain 3 quotes to qualify for state and federal disaster relief. B&W offered the required survey and construction design services and always came in with a competitive price. As work actually got underway an alphabet soup of regulatory agencies, FEMA, CA OES, WRCB, F&W, made various demands that impacted the design and B&W always responded quickly to keep the projects on schedule. With all the regulatory hurdles, permits, construction bids and county construction requirements it took until FY 2024-2025 to complete the last project and Bowman & Williams stuck with us thru the last bit of paving and the last guardrail.

Knowledgeable team, but very poor communication experience…read more The response I received was dismissive, overly aggressive, and unprofessional. Instead of explaining their approach constructively, they criticized other bids and ended the conversation abruptly. I'd recommend getting multiple opinions and relying on an independent structural engineer rather than taking any one contractor's claims at face value.

Avalon Structural is a truly professional organization across the board - front office, inspectors,…read moreengineers, and on-site repair staff. If you have a foundation crack, save yourself the time and trouble and call Avalon Structural first. I got multiple estimates for my fairly extensive ~23' horizontal crack. I found there are three types of companies. The first type will do the minimum to chip out the rusted rebar, throw some fresh rebar in there, patch it up with a "band-aid", and charge you handsomely for a quick in-and-out job. The second will glance at your foundation and immediately tell you it has to be replaced, for an even more handsome price, of course. And then there is Avalon Structural. They will perform a comprehensive and highly structurally sound repair, removing all compromised material, charge a fair price, and stand behind their work with a strong warranty. If you visit their website, read the articles, and watch the videos explaining the right and wrong ways to perform foundation repairs, you will be well-equipped to choose the right company for your foundation job. Or, you can save the time and just call them. We couldn't be happier with our repair. The foundation looks great and feathers in perfectly with the undamaged foundation sections. The repair team was amazing and extremely respectful of our property. The city inspector signed off with zero issues, which speaks volumes about the quality of their work. A big thank you to Roger, MJ, and the entire Avalon Structural team!

I hired SF Bay Engineering for seismic retrofit plans under the Earthquake Brace and Bolt program…read more I was told architectural drawings were required before they could proceed, so I hired and paid an architect to prepare them. After multiple back and forth and with SF Bay Engineering admitting they aren't familiar with the requirements, they terminated the contract. They refunded their engineering fee, but the architectural cost remained my responsibility. I brought the matter to small claims court, and the court ruled that because I retained the plans, reimbursement was not warranted. I recommend future clients clarify in writing how architectural costs will be handled if SF Bay Engineering terminates the contract. Happy to provide additional details upon request

Excellent service. Requested a structural evaluation for some cracks across areas of drywall at my…read moreresidential home. The onsite engineer walked my partner through the damage and inspected the foundation. Provided a thorough report with recommendations for structural improvements. Competitive rates. I appreciate their quality, service and price.

Joe is a life saver. We have called him in during two emergencies, and he has come through for us…read moreboth times. The first was to rescue us from a half-finished bathroom remodel where the original contractor abandoned the project half way through. We could find no other contractor that would touch the project, because you never know the quality of the work already done, and you are kind of assuming responsibility for it. Joe stepped in, fixed some things the previous contractor had screwed up, and finished the bathroom just in time for us to be able to celebrate Thanksgiving with the family visiting. The second time was similar. We had a water line break and it damaged the entire bathroom in the master bedroom. We were displaced from our bedroom and the house was hazardous. Joe was already booked with other projects, but was able to rearrange some of his staff and was able to start fixing the house that very day. Three weeks later, we had a beautiful bathroom. We hadn't anticipated doing another bathroom remodel, and certainly hadn't budgeted for it. Joe's price was very fair, considering the emergency nature of the project and the fact that he had to have people on overtime to help complete the job. I highly recommend JM Construction. They are life savers.

The city works dept managed to flood our downstairs with sewage water, and Joe Martines and his…read moreteam expertly handled every aspect of the repairs and clean-up. They worked long hours to put us out of our misery and leave our downstairs bedrooms and bathrooms looking (and smelling) like new . When it came time to fix our leaking roof terrace, I of course called Joe, and he did a great job. His prices are reasonable, and I intend to use him for all our future construction work. Hopefully it won't involve another sewage flood.

I have worked with Reza and his team on multiple projects. They always make sure to provide best…read moreoptions for each project and ready to go the extra mile to accomplish the goals.

I was looking for a while for a structural engineering firm to help me with a project. Other places…read morewould ask a high up front fee and already had a plan without even visiting the site or getting details from me. Nova Structures actually took the time to work with my specific needs. Reza came out to the site and was able to come up with a solution to my structural engineering problem. Whenever I had questions he would hop on a video call and provide me with the details I needed. The engineering plans potentially saved me several thousands of dollars versus what other firms said the build out could cost.

I have worked with Karen at Nolan Designs and she is one superstar of a home designer and interior…read moredesigner. I am a psychologist and had a couple in my practice who were thrilled with the remodel she did on their home. Karen is a civil engineer and is a real professional. She can help you build the house of your dreams plus help you immensely with interior design. Karen helped me design my entire house and even went shopping with me to pick out some pieces. she has an incredible eye and knows how to put a room together so everybody wants to get together at your home!! Everyday I wake up and smile at my new leather couch, awesome lamps, new dresser and more. She is high energy but focused, can listen to your needs and desires and has rich ideas if you need more options to consider. No need to look any further--just call Karen and set up a consultation. Patrice!!

From the owner: Nolan Designs and Engineering is a residential/commercial design and civil engineering company. We…read moredesign new homes from the ground up, additions and remodels are also in the scope of work. To make the business full circle, we provide engineering services by a licensed Civil Engineer. We are also an interior design company.

My partner and I hired HC Design and Construction originally for engineering services. When we…read morefound out that they were able to take on more projects after completion of our original we felt relieved knowing we wouldn't have to continue shopping around for an additional service provider. Humza and his team do a great job. They delivered quality work, were knowledgeable enough to make recommendations throughout the process, and we were impressed by Humza's entrepreneurial spirit and Jack-of-many-trades persona.

For the past month, Humza has intermittently talked out of all sides of his mouth, contradicting…read morehimself and providing sketchy commentary that has delayed our project for close to a month. He doesn't appear to be phased by not doing what he says or fulfilling anything pertinent to the relatively small part he may have had for this project. The underlying theme of his inconsistent communications and mixed messaging, is akin to throwing out a bunch of fishing lines hoping to snag something with one or more them. So he arrives for an introductory visit to see the job. Then he repeatedly grouses at end of brief visit and for weeks later because he claims to usually charge for an intro appointment. But that's not what we agreed to from the onset. All he seems interested in, way late and after burning this bridge for weeks and not responding timely or at all on topic, is to recoup money for an intro appointment he agreed was no charge, then send vacuous emails off topic and complain that he's not been paid for them either. He punctuates that carnival like behavior by fixating on soliciting a large retainer ahead of some unknown level of service to follow on an hourly basis. Such an unprofessional, predatory manner of stringing along well intentioned potential property owner and some contractors. Not a good or trustworthy or professional look or experience by any measure. If I was to ever revisit this with him, which is highly unlikely, I'd be sure to charge him a retainer up front.