Northstar Construction

Northstar provided general contracting services for our veterinary hospital starting in July of 2019 with a contract end date approximately 141 days from the start of construction. They finally finished in March of 2021, almost two years later.

Construction management was poor to nonexistent most days, causing many delays that lasted weeks and months without any work being completed. They left the roof open for months during which stormwater flooded the interior of the building 5 times.

They left us with many patent and latent defects that we have been finding as they fail. For example, a condensation line was left open and dripping in the wall. It took a year for the insulation and drywall to saturate to the point where we noticed the wall leaking from a door frame 10 feet away. We had to remove caging, open the wall completely, pull out all the wet and moldy materials and treat for mold. Northstar refused to pay for it claiming it was after their 1 year warranty period, even though they know patent and latent defects have 4 and 10 year warranty periods.

We've found many other problems, but most egregious of all, they hired a flooring contractor who had lost their license. This flooring contractor had the worst ratings on all major rating sites going back years and complaints filed against them with the CSLB. Within a few days after installation, the epoxy started bubbling up and pulling away from the concrete slab, and continues to do so more than 2 years later.

There are large areas where the epoxy has broken away, leaving areas of bare concrete exposed. The rest looks filthy and unsanitary because it was so rough, it's impossible to clean properly. This is not just an eyesore, but a health and safety risk for our patients. If the veterinary board happens to inspect the premises, this may cause them to take disciplinary action against our hospital. We have been trying to get Northstar to take responsibility, and they refuse to do so with any serious intent.