SHERCO MASONRY INC

Start date: May 10, 2011 (first check issued) End date: May 16, 2011 (balance issued) In May 2011, Kevin Sherco and his crew were contracted to remove and repour our driveway and side walk. We noticed last year, the cement on the sidewalk appeared white on sunny, hot days, but didn?t think much of it at the time. As the snow melted this year, we noticed a significant amount of chipping/cracking on both sides of the concrete, the full length of the sidewalk. We have NOT seen anything similar to this on our driveway. During the process of having several estimates provided for a garage project, each of the four contractors commented about the ?bad pour? of the sidewalk and said ?if it had been my job, I would replace it.? One of these contractors has a master?s certification from World of Concrete and Braun Intertec. He informed my husband that we should contact Sherco Masonry and request them to come and remove/replace the sidewalk. We immediately contacted Harold Shermer (listed owner of Sherco). He informed us that there is nothing wrong with it and ?that?s just Minnesota for you.? He also told us to contact Kevin, ?but don?t plan on anything being done about it.? We attempted to contact Kevin several times over the span of a week (leaving messages), and it was only when we mentioned action with the BBB and Attorney General?s office that he contacted me. We asked that he come out and take a look at the concrete for himself. We agreed he would come out on Thursday, May 9 after 3pm, so my husband and I could both be at the house. He contacted me on May 9 at approximately 2:00pm to inform me that since he was rained out of work, he stopped by our house. He stated that it had to have been the salt from the street and there was nothing that could be done to repair it. When I pressed him about why there wasn?t the same amount of damage on our driveway (also poured by his crew), he said that it was a different grade of concrete. I also pressed him about why there wouldn?t be similar damage to the three sidewalk panels poured by the city of Minneapolis, just one year prior. He again said that he must have been the salt from the street and there was nothing he could do. After speaking with my husband about Kevin?s response, we called Kevin and asked him to come and remove and replace the entire sidewalk. His response was an offer to come and seal the sidewalk (which should have been done when the original sidewalk was poured). We accepted the offer, as long as he agreed to warranty the seal for two years. He refused, so we feel that action with the BBB and Attorney General?s offices, and possible litigation, are our only options.