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To Whom It May Concern,
I am writing this letter to describe my experience with David Deveau Construction during the construction of my home at xxx Pelican Way in Point Richmond. I was referred to David Deveau by a client whose home he built in 2005 in the same neighborhood as mine. They had a very positive experience with his company and strongly suggested that I use him. My home was a complicated project as it was built over the San Francisco Bay, which required a great deal of planning and foresight. I had difficulty acquiring a building permit due to problems with my architect and the City of Richmond, but David was able to work around those issues by doing as much as he possibly could with the approved permits that we had and timing the other construction around the delays of the permit process. The day the final permits were issued David and his crew were prepared to move forward immediately and did so. The project began in the Spring of 2006 and was completed approximately one year later, which is exactly what I was told when I hired his company.
Using estimates from other similar projects, David submitted a bid to complete the construction that later became the framework for the budget on my home. He was able to keep the project on budget despite my many changes to the original finishes. David is adept at finding alternatives to products that save money without sacrificing the quality of the finished product. For example, my original budget called for Anderson Windows at a cost of over 80K, David found a similar window (Lincoln) for about half the price and the windows actually had a better warranty than the name brand Anderson windows. This allowed me to upgrade other finishes in the house without going over budget. He did this on several occasions by doing the research and letting me make the decision on the final product. We had several budget meetings throughout the project and I was kept up to speed on how far over or under we were whenever I wanted to know. There were never any budget surprises.
The quality of construction was clearly of the utmost importance to David Deveau and his crew. David and his foreman Mark Odenkirchen oversaw every detail of the construction and ensured that it was done correctly, not only by his crew but by the sub-contractors as well. There were instances when products were returned or jobs were redone because they were not up to his standards. I have lived in the house for about 4 months and not encountered any construction defects. I had a problem with some of the plumbing fixtures and had to call David to get the plumber back out to fix them. He was very responsive and the problems were resolved quickly. I have dealt with many contractors in the past and have always had difficulty getting them to respond to problems after they were paid.
In conclusion, I would highly recommend David Deveau Construction for the construction of a new home. Quality construction that is on time and on budget is very difficult to find these days and I was fortunate to find that with David Deveau Construction.
Sincerely,
xxx Wirthman
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MAGUIRE/MAGUIRE, INCORPORATED
To Whom It May Concern:
I engaged Deveau Construction as my general contractor for construction of my new residence at 1465 Sandpiper Spit, Brickyard Cove, Point Richmond. The project is now in the last third of construction.
With professional assistance of my architect, David Marlatt, I reviewed bids from several contractors who had experience at Brickyard Cove, and I interviewed them and their respective references and made site visits to their projects.
Of the bidders, Deveau’s was the highest bid. Nevertheless, he was my choice.
The reasons were:
- I had seen his crew in action on a nearby project and was impressed with their professionalism.
- All his references were absolutely enthusiastic. Even neighbors to his projects were complimentary. His foremen and crew were well-liked in the community.
- To my eye and to that of my architect, Deveau’s product was superior. My father was an accomplished carpenter, so “fit and finish” was something I specifically looked for.
The choice has proven to be a good one. Dave Deveau developed a good working relationship with my architect. His choices of vendors and subcontractors have been excellent. He handled my budget carefully and addressed the inevitable change orders, most as the result of my decisions, very well. His advice, counsel, and suggestions have been creative and have improved the project as we’ve moved along.
I recommend Deveau Construction without hesitation. I would engage them again. I’d be happy to answer any question you may have.
Sincerely,
xxxxx Maguire
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Dear David,
When Beverly and I were looking for a contractor to build our home at 1437 Sand piper Spit, the clean job site across for our lot motivated us to contact you as a possible contractor. We were convinced by the positive reports from all 17 referrals you provided. One man said, “If you can get Dave to build your house, do it and you will be very glad you did”. We think that was good advice. In my opinion, you excelled in three main areas:
- Thinking ahead/attention to detail. Do to your meticulous checking and correcting of shop drawings for our foundation steel fabrication, the installation was flawless. The pieces all fit when they arrived on site. I have seen other contractors keep an expensive crane and crews on the job for much as a week while they sort steel out. That pattern of thinking ahead and attention to detail was repeated throughout the job. You were always ten steps ahead, which expedited the construction process and saved us money.
- Budgeting/cost estimating. Your construction cost estimates were very detailed an accurate. We didn’t always like the number, but with the amount of detail you provided, we knew it was right. The detail was very helpful in value engineering the project. We appreciated you researching many different window options, and finding a radiant heating system through the Internet. Those two efforts resulted in substantial savings to us. Even with the savings you achieved for us, we spent more than we planned on the house. All of the extra costs were the result of our decisions to upgrade. You never went over your budget estimates.
- Working relationship. We enjoyed working with you and the job supervisor Mark. When we had an idea, you always said, “Lets think about that”, rather than dismiss it out of hand. Every now and then, we had a good one. The neighbors always commented that they liked the way you maintained the site and were very glad to have you on the street.
We have lived in the house now for 1-1/2 years and are very satisfied with the house and the job you did for us. We are please to recommend you.
Sincerely,
Chris Curtis
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xxxxx R. Fauvre
XXX Sandpiper Spit
Point Richmond, CA 94801
To Whom It May Concern:
David Deveau was the General Contractor for the construction of my residence at the above address. I highly recommend Dave for many reasons, in addition to his good nature!
He has very high standards for his work and his subcontractors, and spends personal time getting not only the best people but the fairest prices. He and his crew are reliable and sensitive to the needs and requirements of the neighborhood and any homeowners’ groups. He is will to work with the architect, homeowner and subcontractors to iron out the many ambiguities that arise during the process of putting plans to production. My architect, Brain Harris, felt his architectural plans were executed with care and excellence. (see http://www.tca-inc.com and Fauvre Residence for pictures of my home.
The quality that I most appreciated from Dave and his crew was the creativity with which they tackled design issues. He’s willing to explore new territory, research new methods in order to come up with a solution that satisfies everyone involved.
I would be happy to speak anyone; you can reach me at the above telephone number or email address.
Virginia R. Fauvre
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