I referenced this thread when we were having leaking (stemming from an ice dam) over the winter, so I wanted to share our experiences in working with S&S Roofing.

Based on the most recent recommendations, we contacted S&S?who came promptly the next day. While they couldn?t fix the immediate problem (this was when it was snowing constantly and temperatures were at record lows), they did shovel the roof and diagnose the problem. We were told to get in touch with them once the weather got nicer.

A few weeks (months?) later, we asked them to fix the previously discussed problem as well as address a recent issue with some (seemingly) minor leaking that resulted in a few water spots inside the house. S&S determined it was due to some improperly installed flashing and other normal roof issues. We had the work completed. We paid them. It turns out the ?fixes? prescribed by S&S did not resolve the problem, water was still leaking in, and a little more forcefully than during the previous rains. We contacted S&S again, and they felt that it was because we did not have part of his suggested work completed. Fair enough, we did not exactly follow his advice, and were paying the price. We asked him to do that additional work before the next rain. We weren?t able to schedule that work immediately, but he suggested a stopgap solution: place a tarp around the brickwork, and we would be able to weather the storm, so to speak.

Needless to say, things did not go according to plan. The next day, we had one of those crazy spring thunderstorms, which culminated in a major water explosion. Water was pouring out of the ceiling, through the heating/cooling vents, light fixtures and through the walls. The leaking continued through the building, ruining rooms on the fourth and third floors. We called S&S that night to let them know what was happening (we had been in touch with Seymond that day?we agreed to keep him updated on the status during the rainstorm). He didn?t answer our call and never returned our messages. To date, we never heard back. For all they know, the tarp is still there!

There were a number of red flags that I wish we had paid attention to?I was pregnant at the time and my due date was during this time period, and I admit we were not as on top of things as we could (should) have been. Things like?they were ALWAYS late. Like, HOURS late. Multiple calls following up LATE. One time, they committed to being at our house on a Tuesday and NEVER SHOWED UP or called with an explanation. We constantly were following up with them, chasing them down. It was frustrating. Additionally, the quote provided was verbal and we had to press him to get a written one?my husband eventually wrote it up.

The only time they were prompt was when it came time to pick up a check.

Before we had the communication/completion issues, we found Seymond to be nice and knowledgeable. The solution (which was identified by a different roofer) was difficult, but he was (likely) juggling too many jobs and maybe wasn?t the most qualified to deal with our immediate problem. At the end of the day, our job was probably much smaller compared to others, and he deprioritized our project, and eventually stopped returning our calls, but not before several thousand dollars of damage to the building occurred. While S&S might generally be a good roofer, he was clearly not the right fit for our project.

We eventually used Mark Nejmeh of Jersey City Roof Repair / Real Roofers and the differences between the two were night and day. Mark was on top of things from the moment we started the process, communicated at early hours during an emergency and was committed to completing the job in a QUALITY fashion.

morton williams has a decent selection of ethnic food of the asian ilk (korean, indian). i would check there.[quote]

can you clarify if anyone was in the car when it was shot at?

in an effort to be helpful, as opposed to spewing rhetoric which may or may not be correct (depending on which economic school of thought one subscribes to), you can find out the real reason here:

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010 ... pected_along_i-78e_d.html

or

http://www.thealternativepress.com/article.asp?news=14290

the traffic has been horrendous since this construction started. other than to commiserate at the current situation, there's not so much we can do (i have started working from home in the morning to compensate -- but i have to leave before 9 a.m. to skip the pulaski construction!) -- and hope that the future traffic pattern is beneficial.

you could also take 280. or go through hoboken. or tonnelle. except they are not so convenient, i agree.

i'll be sure to brush her hair into your cup, so you can be the newest internet sensation, one dork, one cup.

it was just a question. some/most normal people don't mind if a well-behaved dog sits outside whilst one enjoys a beer. and that is why some places are "friendly" while other places are not. and since i respect that some establishments might not want to be dog friendly because of people like you, i am asking the question.

hi!

was wondering if there were general suggestions of dog friendly places to eat / drink in jersey city. i noticed that "it's greek to me" had a sign saying it was dog friendly. any others?

mission burrito is amazing. it is by far the best food in the heights.

then there was the time that some people who were high on some drug killed a man in their house and then cut him in half and put him in a supermarket cart in order to get rid of his body. true story. on palisades, i think. or baldwin.

i live in the general pershing field / reservoir area. we like the palisades liquor store the best. and matarazzos. i still dream of that damn coffee shop. i will post that on every message thread re: the heights until we get one!!!

i have noticed more hipsters living in the area lately. maybe some people consider me a hipster, i have no idea since i am not really that hip, generally speaking.

not that anyone cares, but i am pretty happy living in the heights. i live on a decent block in a restored old-ass building that would have cost a fortune if it were located anywhere else (i.e. downtown, hoboken, the city, brooklyn). that being said, i would be less happy if i didn't have a car. but, given that i work in NJ while future husband works in the city, it's (almost!) a fair trade.

my one wish is for a coffee shop to open up in the area -- on palisades!!! someone make my wish come true!

i was so sad to see gr8 taste go. now it's a generic asian takeout.

here's another source:

http://www.politickernj.com/matt-frie ... ey-city-public-official-4

this event was awesome! i hope that it becomes a regular event! it was so fun to see the dogs running around in the reservoir. my dog enjoyed the heck out of it!!

an "authentic" german bier garden wouldn't be authentic without germans or germany.

thank you! we like living up there so far! a lot of our friends who were ex-hoboken then ex-downtown jersey city residents are now living in the heights. there are some amazing buildings in the area, which is a non-sequitor, but makes us love the neighborhood even more.

i just moved to reservoir too. i find it to be fairly quiet . . .

"if you don't ask you don't get it."

while i have not lived here for 25 years, i have lived here for almost 10. and i think it depends on how experienced the landlord is and how savvy the renter is.

some people are responsible and some people are not. we just bought a place but the last place we rented from (just left one month ago) was a nightmare. the landlord definitely would have taken advantage of anyone who didn't know his/her rights.

he tried to put our deposit into a checking account in his name. he then claimed he didn't know how to create an escrow account in our name. this took about 2 months. we then asked him if he was not able to create an escrow account in our names, to at least create a interest-bearing savings account. eventually, he grudgingly agreed but don't think for a second that it didn't affect our tenant/owner relationship. he made things excrutiatingly different than it should have been. we also never received any interest payments or notifications. i doubt we will receive it when we receive our deposit.

i think if you are renting from a single entity (i.e. some schmo who bought a place and decided to rent it out) you are better off being versed in renters' rights.

and also, since i've just read up on this, the landlord has 30 days to provide the deposit, otherwise, you are allowed to ask for double the amount owed to you + time wasted + court costs.