The Urban Lumberjack

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It went very well. The Urban Lumberjack returned my call promptly after a couple of days and gave me all of the information that I needed.

He came during the summer and told me that winter was the best time to do pruning of trees, which others hadn't told me. Eventually I had him do the work, and he did a good job, and at a reasonable price.

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Steve Marshall, The Urban Lumberjack, is the best tree man in this city.  He persisted in staying in touch during a difficult period of making contact while I was unavailable.  He eventually came to the site and thoroughly examined the job I had for him.  Removal of a large tree overgrowing my property onto the property of a neighbor.  The job was very complicated because of the formation of the tree and the difficulty of dealing with an angry neighbor.  Mr. Marshall calmed the waters with the neighbor while he drafted a plan of removal that took a lot of experience, professionalism and expertise.  The removal went exactly according to his plan and was expertly performed by his regular crew (no pickup guys from the corner).  From bid (totally reasonable), to performance and cleanup, Marshall was onsite and in charge.  I can't praise him enough, but I can and do highly recommend this gentleman for any tree job that needs to be done.  The Urban Lumberjack is the best referral I have received from Angie's List.  Great guy, great job.

Steve is very responsive and thorough. Like me, he wants all the details and information so he can make the right call as far as next step. The entire process while working with The Urban Lumberjack was very professional. His guys were fast and very thorough. I would definitely hire them again.

Mr. Marshall came out to give me a free estimate on 8/29/15.  He was very professional and knowledgeable.  In fact, over the years I've had different arborists trim my trees and he is the most knowledgeable.  He explained which ones I could do now and when the best time of year to trim the trees were, how each tree should be trimmed/pruned.  I arranged for his crew to come out on 9/4 which they did on time.  They were terrific.  I also had three bushes removed including all the roots.  The crew was on time and efficient and they cleaned up.

Service was very professional and courteous. Steve spent a lot of time explaining to us what his team would do and why and gave us some tips on caring for our trees. His crew did a great job, was always on time, and did some additional work on smaller trees that wasn't included in the original contract. We are very pleased with the results and would definitely hire again.

Steve was great, he came out for the initial consultation, confirmed that my tree was actually dead and scheduled a time for his crew to come out and take the whole thing down.  The neighbors electrical and cable lines were caught up in the branches and his team was careful to leave them in perfect working condition.
Later he came back out to pick up his final payment and spent time with my wife and me to diagnose some other minor issues with trees on our property.  Really appreciated his professionalism and knowledge.

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I was impressed with Steve's attention to the trees health when he came to provide the estimate. I had several estimates, and none, except for Steve (Urban Lumberjack) noticed that a couple of the trees were not well rooted (you could move the trunks by pushing on them) which could result in a strong wind knocking them over. As a result, he suggested re-staking these trees.  He also discussed what I was trying to accomplish with the trimming (e.g., light, reaching fruit).  I actually thought a couple of my other fruit trees needed trimming, but on inspection, he persuaded me that they were not needed at this time. The price was very good for all the work done.  
The team of two that trimmed the trees were polite and efficient. I will note that the only time power tools were used was for large branches, otherwise they pruned by hand. The cleaned up very well. I did not find any trimmings left over, which usually is the case. They were very careful in the removal of the fig and hibuscus, which were tied up in my drip irrigation lines. If they had cut the lines, they would have had to be repaired, but no problems.
Overall, I was most pleased and impressed. I will definitely be using them again.
The Urban Lumberjack is a small business compared to the tree trimming firms tied to big nurseries. The personal focus and attention is much appreciated! Thank you.

I found Steve via the ISA website and have used him on a few occasions: On the first occasion, he went to a heavily landscaped property near Mount Olympus that we were looking at buying and gave us a very helpful assessment of the health of the trees on that property. We didn't end up buying that house, and on that occasion I only dealt with him via email and phone. However, I was very impressed by how knowledgable he was and how much he genuinely cared about trees. 
When we ended up buying another house in Benedict Canyon later in the year, he was the first person I thought to ask regarding the health of several oaks and pines on the property, as well as of the other trees closer to our house. He gave me clear instructions on how to care for the trees going forward (we had been concerned about overwatering, and he confirmed that this was the case), gave me a brief course in understanding trees and what they want, and advised me regarding what tree trimming was needed--mostly to get rid of dead branches and remove ivy that had climbed up one of the pines. Assessments cost us $135, with a verbal report (not a written one).
I hired him and his crew to handle the tree trimming and ivy removal. He and his crew did an excellent job--exactly what they had said they would do and for the price that he quoted me. He was also very professional at every turn, calling to let me know when his crew was running late, and answering my husband's numerous questions that day. Tree trimming for quite a few trees cost $780.
Overall, I highly recommend his services if you care about your trees and want them to thrive. Nice guy, very knowledgable, very professional. 

Came promptly for estimate, spent about 45 minutes discussing our options.  Stressed work that didn't need to be done at this time, tree care, previous gardeners' tree trimming booboos that he could rectify.  Very professional and listened carefully to all of our dilemmas and concerns.  Familiar with the tree species we have and explained clearly how the tree would look after trimming (shape).  His being able to visualize the end result helped us decide whether and which branches (low hanging) to cut off.  
Sent his proposal by email promptly, also was bonded and insured (very important to us).  We decided to do part of the work now and more at a later date, and Steve was extremely accommodating as to re-estimating prices and came to the house a second time to make sure everything could be done expeditiously.   Made a very convenient appointment for a near date, workers (2)  came exactly as planned at 7 a.m., even though one of the workers called in sick and so Steve needed to send a substitute.  Their work was outstanding (I've seen a lot of tree trimmings in my 41 years at this address) and the pruned trees looked the best they ever have.  The workers were so polite and professional, and took good care not to break the surrounding fuchsia limbs.  They were interested in making sure I was pleased with the way the job was going, especially with a vine that I look at all day outside my kitchen window.   Cleaned up perfectly, no damage to anything.  Bottom line, although all the estimates we got from Angie's List were also fine, I trusted Steve the most to help my olive tree look its best (and not chopped off in all the wrong places).

Steve Marshal knows his trees. He is very generous with his knowledge which is great for a treeowner. His team came on time, did a great job, were careful not to trample any other plants and left everything clean and perfect.

It was a large old maple probably 50 years old that had begun to rot and was becoming dangerous. It took 3 days to cut, remove the wood and clean the yard. The workers were courteous and did a great job on the tree and amazingly didn't trash the other plants around the tree. They cut some of the wood for me to burn in my fireplace. Their bid was much lower than the estimates of other companies.

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Steve Marshall is an extremely knowledgeable arborist.  A very friendly man with great communication skills and a dog friendly person!

He spent time on his weekend going over what we are doing right and wrong all invaluable information and we follow all of his suggestions.  He recommended we remove a nectarine that is using water and not producing.  Looked at our gigantic Mulberry and said to wait to trim till next year, (Surprising but OK).  Some comments on our Avocado to change a branch support and told us to top our Tangerine.

This was truly a free consultation. 

Thank You Steve from Amanda and Doug

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