Beyond Landscaping

Sandy was recommended by friend who was very happy with 2 large projects he did for them. They did the design work on started on time (actually a day or two early). Great crew that were all professional. Project looks great. Highly recommend

I dealt with Beyond Landscaping through my general contractor, but I wanted to commend them for the excellent work they did. The new porch, steps and driveway look amazing - and it's incredible to compare what it looks like now to the old and crumbling drive and porch from the past. The concept drawings were excellent in allowing us to visualize the final result and I couldn't be happier with the process from start to finish. Also, we were on a tight schedule and the turn around time was extremely impressive. Highly recommended.

We can't say enough good things about Beyond Landscaping. We had multiple companies quote our project and we were most comfortable with Beyond Landscaping's honest, reasonable and creative approach. They took the time to come up with a unique design and to listen to our concerns and vision. They had great ideas on how to utilize our space appropriately and how to safely support our sloped property. They created a curved stone wall to support our sloping garden, designed a large welcoming pathway to our front door with a large unique stone step up to the porch, and then worked with me to find plants and flowers that would bloom at different times of the year for colour interest yet survive our very shaded yard. During the project they were respectful of our neighbours, worked diligently every day until the project was complete and had great integrity to make us happy. We have had loads of compliments from friends, family and complete strangers passing by. We even recently won an award for the look and design of our landscaping. I would highly recommend that you contact Beyond Landscaping if you are considering a project for your home. I also welcome anyone to come and see our finished product or to contact me through Heather and Sandy if you'd like to ask me any questions. Best of luck with your project! Pam

We were extremely pleased with the work that Beyond Landscape did. We had a tight budget and Sandy was able to come up with a creative solution that reused some of the stone from the original stairs. Sandy was willing to break the job into 2 stages so that we could stay within our current budget restraints while not having to "undo" any of the work that has now been done. Their staff (led by Mike) were courteous, polite, and tidy. Inquiries and calls were returned promptly by Heather and Sandy. The quote was straight forward and there were no hidden costs. We get compliments on the new stairs all the time and have recommended BEYOND LANDSCAPE to many people already.

We definitely would not do any further business with this company and cannot recommend them to your readers.

THE GOOD:
A suitable design was provided. A crew of three workers appeared most days during the construction. The workers were polite and courteous and worked efficiently. They displayed respect for the properties of our neighbours and left the job site clean each evening.

THE BAD:

The job did not start at the time indicated by the company nor was there any contact or explanation of a problem. We were not totally surprised as it is not unusual in construction to have some delays. What is unusual is not receiving any information from the contractor that they would be starting late. After three weeks we sent an e-mail and only then were we contacted. The job started over a month late.

There was no mention at the start of the job that it would be too late in the season to do any planting. Only when the construction of the porch was finished were we advised that it was too late to plant and that would have to wait for the spring.

The agreement entered into with Sandy included a iron railing installed on the front porch. As the job was finishing we asked Sandy if he had a sample or photograph of the railing that would be installed. He directed us to the sub-contractor who would be installing the railing. We attended there and were content with what was to be installed.

A few days later without any contact or discussion we received an e-mail from Beyond Landscaping indicating they would attend in the spring to do the planting. The e-mail contained an invoice for work performed to date and the following statement: “We thought it would be better for you to deal directly with the railing guy to choose exactly what you want. So we have discounted our price for you.”

We fail to see how any reasonable and responsible business person would think it appropriate to unilaterally make a change to an agreement without any discussion with the customer and then to unilaterally decide the amount of money to be deducted as a result of the change.

Hunt Club couple

We chose beyond landscaping partly because of the reviews on this board, and partly because of their professional manner during the sales process.
We were sorely disappointed throughout the project and continue to be disappointed with the quality of work. We have since had to replant much of their plantings and repair the deck after only 1 year. Our experience is detailed below.

TIMING
In part we hired beyond because they committed to completing the project by August 1st. They dug out our backyard in late July( I presume so they could collect the deposit) and left the hole there for over 3 weeks. The project was not finished until mid September, too late for us to enjoy the patio last season.

RESPONSIVENESS
Between the first hole digging in mid july, and when they resumed work sometime at the end of August we called them daily to inquire as to progress. We would have been happy to talk to someone in person, but no one showed up at our house for over 3 weeks. Our calls were unanswered. When the answered e-mails they offered lame excuses about whether or being otherwise busy. We were left with a hole in our backyard for 3 weeks with no one explaining how long until it was remedied and our backyard finished, as no one answered our calls, unless I masked my phone number. This is totally unacceptable.

This spring, after most of their plantings did not survive (apparently they were planted too late in the year because of their delay), we asked them to take a look and replace. The same plants looked like they hadn't ever taken root last year, but we were told they would emerge healthy this spring. They apparently came by to look and they said the plants looked OK and should come back (This was late april). Eventually in Late May they said they would come by again and check it out and replace the plants. It is now late june and they have yet to keep their word, so we have given up.

DESIGN
We were not given the opportunity to choose materials (stone colour etc) and no rendered drawing were provided. We indicated a desire to hang a hammock, but when the deck was built they told us it wouldn't be sturdy enough. We had to repeatedly communicate our desires as we felt they did not listen clearly to us.

QUALITY OF WORK
Several of the joints are cracking. The latch on the door is metal but fits into a hole in a wooden piece which is wearing down. Due to settling of the deck, the latch no longer closes, and the door continually swings.

Most of the plants died upon being planted. The stone work is actually pretty good.

COST
Beyond landscaping was between 20-30% above other contractors. We chose them because we had a time constraint on the project, and wanted things done well. This was money wasted as any contractor can take more than twice as long and do mediocre to poor work.

CONCLUSION
I can only conclude that smaller jobs <50000 do not interest beyodn landscaping, and they do not feel these smaller customers are deserving of their attention.

Complete new landscape design of entire front of house including flagstone porch and walkways. Unusual design, amazing attention to detail and a perfectionistic approach made for an awesome result! The job site was cleaned up daily and thoroughly, the workmen were friendly and Sandy was very easily to deal with.

My only complaint is that it took a long time to get started. Once BL was here, the project went quickly and smoothly.

I can't say enough about Sandy and his crew. They exceeded my(very particular)expectations in EVERY way. Precisely on time, on budget. Actually saved us quite a bit of money with their design and stone recommondations. Excellent work. Excellent creativity on potentially challanging areas. Done in 1 week. They actually (beleive it or not)had to bring ALL stone, aggregate, supplies and crew THROUGH OUR HOUSE (front hall-dining room-living room) to get to the enclosed back of our townhouse... and all we needed after a weeks work was a thorough dusting. Our place was returned to pristine condition EVERY DAY by 5pm when we got home from work/daycare with our 2 year old daughter. Unbeleiveable. I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND Sandy/Beyond Landscaping for ANY project. Any size.

Sandy and his crew started on time (a week early actually), finished on time, stayed within the budget, and kept the site clean. They were able to re-use our "recovered" stone so that everything still matches the house. We now have a superb wall, steps that will stand the test of time, and be really good looking for another 40 years. Thank you.

We hired Beyond Landscaping to replace the decking around our in-ground pool and a set of stairs into the house. They gave us several different design ideas and we were able to choose which one worked best for us. They were always available to answer any questions or concerns that we had. The workmanship was outstanding and the job was completed in a timely and professional manner. One of our neighbours was so impressed they retained Beyond Landscaping for work around their home.