Business ProfileforA.U.E. Construction Group, LLC

Built walkway and dock and installed 10,000lb boat lift, started the walkway 2' above grade and built the entire dock over 1' above requested. Now the entire walkway and dock need handrails. The lift installed does not even reach the water and the pilings can be easily moved with one finger. Needless to say, it did not pass inspection! They never showed up to fix/repair errors and will not respond to phone calls or emails. Filed complaint with DBPR. Run from this company!!!!

To whom it may concern, June 13, 2021
This letter is in response to the ****** complaint to the DBPR & BBB.

They originally visited one of our other projects up the peace River. That was a dock 5' over the water level and 400' LF of raised decking with no railing through the mangroves and shrubs. They expressed interest in something similar. It was going to be a cart path for her husband to ride his golf cart out to a dock. We gave them the option of "scuppers" and they declined, stating their son was going to build railing.
A.U.E. submitted all the necessary paperwork to Desoto Building Dept. A.U.E. does all their due diligence in submitting paperwork to the counties we work in. We rely on their professionalism to guide us in the codes of their county. We received the approvals for her permit and started the work and completed in a timely fashion. Ms ***** and other family members visited the property, spoke to the foreman (Carlton) and expressed satisfaction at every step during the building process.
We started the boardwalk at a raised elevation to keep her Caps and stringers (structural wood) out of the water. When we originally met, ***** and ******* expressed this was a low lying area and floods frequently. She also stated she wanted the dock height to be 1' higher than the neighbors dock directly to the right of their dock. They even said to Tommy when they met him on site that the neighbor didn't mind us walking over to his dock. The end elevation was 9.5" higher than they originally requested. It wasn't until the inspector came out and failed the boardwalk for not having Railing or steps, that Ms ***** expressed dissatisfaction because of the extra cost of railing. We offered her a fair price to do the railing, and she declined.
The same inspector that failed the project is the same inspector who originally approved the decking/ dock and boatlift plans before we commenced the project. We agreed to lower the deck 9.5" to where she originally requested, and when her son visited the property he asked if it could be lowered an additional 5" and our project manager on site agreed. This lowering of the deck will still not change the fact that the county will still require fill dirt and railing in some areas of the deck.
We finished as agreed on Monday June 7th (Prior to permit expiring June 16th). Installing the railing was never part of the project and A.U.E will not be installing anything for free because of the negligence of a county official. The ******* will need to pull their own permit to install railing. Once all balances are paid the Lien will be lifted. I spoke to ****** at ****** CO Bldg dept and said once the ****** pull their own permit to do the railing he will final our work out. She says it is not built to code and that is not true.
We are disappointed that she filed false complaint 3.5 weeks prior to the date we were required to complete the changes. We are forwarding this response to DBPR and BBB to have her complaint removed. It is blasphemy and defamation of character to say we don't respond when I have emails and phone conversations between us from the start of the project. It is unfortunate behavior for such a beautiful project. We told her we had an unexpected death in the family. It was quite tragic and we needed time to get to her dock but would be there as soon as we could.
Her complaint should have been directed at the individual at the county office that approved the project without railing and then changed his mind once he came to final the project out.

Please be advised that we requested all paperwork and drawings from A.U.E. as submitted to Permitting several times via email and phone calls, we did not receive any requested info until after the dock and lift failed County inspection. Upon review of the paperwork as submitted, there are no elevations of the walkway or dock. We never asked for the walkway to start over 2' above grade with no access onto the walkway. We did decline the option for scuppers along the bottom of the walkway, which in no way effects the fact that the walkway needs handrails. The Contractor constructed by the walkway without providing us or the County with elevations and we never stated that we wanted to incur the additional cost of handrails. We were not advised that the walkway would need handrails until it failed inspection. Both ourselves and ****** County had no way of knowing that the walkway was being constructed above the 30" which is per Florida Building Code. It is the Builders responsibility to know the State Code. We tried to reach A.U.E. via emails and phone calls, which they had stopped responding to, at which time I filed a complaint with DBPR. At no time were we happy with the work they performed and have numerous emails stating such. We also have emails proving that the Tommy (the Contractor) failed to meet us at the jobsite per our appointments in effort to try to rectify the situation. The boat lift originally did not even reach the water, the poles are different sizes and the poles can easily be shook with one finger. They did return and put longer cables on the lift and lower the walkway which is still over the 30" above grade without prior notification that they were returning. There are now several damaged deck boards from when they returned last week and the lift pilings have so much deflection that we do not feel confident putting our boat in the lift. The walkway, dock and lift still will not pass inspection and we will not be liable for pulling an additional permit or any additional costs for handrails that we were not advised that we needed in the first place, as it is the Contractors responsibility to complete the project per Florida Building Code.

****** Dock; schedule of events:
10/16 expressed commitment for dock construction. 70' walkway; 10 x 30 dock
1/5 Permits are ready at Desoto County; requested ****** meet us on property for layout. Ms *****, husband and son Ken met myself and foreman Carlton on site. Discussed wanting dock height to be a foot higher than neighbor to the right. They mentioned it is wet most of the time so we will make it high enough for superstructure to be out of water. They talked about making it wide enough for a golf cart. His son rented a skidsteer to clear land and said he would make the ground level at the start of the walkway with dirt and gravel.
1/8-1/28 The ****** visited the property several times during the project and never expressed any concerns.
1/29 I let ms ***** know our crew was finished. Her reply via email:
"Chuck and I will be able to see it all this weekend. You have impressed people in the area with your work. We met the golf course owner who came with a friend last weekend who was told to go and take a look. Hope this helps your business". ***** ***** "
2/14 ms ***** emailed us with a couple of concerns; screws loose, boards to cut.
2/16 we made necessary adjustments per her request.
2/18 Inspection scheduled; Desoto county failed walkway, I Called county to find out why. I was told to talk to Lester.
2/21 Talked to Lester at Desoto county. Says it needs railing because decking is over 30" high. I asked why this was not noted when Permit was approved and Lester said he must have overlooked it.
2/22 Let ****** know county is now requiring railing. Gave her a price, she declined said they will have her son Ken build for them. Her return email is as follows:
2/23

"*********,
We have looked for regulations for dock railings in Desoto County. We need specifications for creating a railing before we do something that may not pass. No where can we find that railings are mandated by Desoto County. Docks looked at this morning nearby have different heights. Is there a department for docks besides Lester, that can give us clear facts about the railings?
***** *****"

2/23 I replied that I will call Lester again, I didn't see anything specific on Desoto's building website either. But to call Lester for more information.
2/23 Ms ***** emailed:
"Thanks for the information. I will let my son know."

3/8 ***** ***** asked if Tommy could meet them on property to discuss changes.
3/9 Tommy met ***** & Chuck ***** and son Ken at their property and discussed what they needed done. Discussed Change out the cables for longer ones and lower dock 9.5" which is a foot higher than the neighbors dock. We let her know the original crew is out of town until August. We will get there as soon as we have a crew freed up.

5/5 Ms ***** emailed the following:
"If this is not rectified before the expiration of Permit No. Bldr-*********, dated June 14, 2021, we will have to contact the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulations to pursue legal actions against you." Chuck and ***** *****

5/17 Reported us to BBB and DBPR well before 6-14-21.
6/3 we were able to get a different crew out to make the cable change out and drop dock 9.5" (at no charge)
6/4 The ****** Son, Ken met our guys out at your property on 6/4 and 6/7 and asked them to drop the deck 14" inches not 9.5" inches our crew complied.
6/10 We are finished with what was expected of us. I let ms ***** know they can pull their own permit to construct railing. Railing was never in her estimate. I already spoke to Lester at Desoto bldg. dept. Once they pull the permit he will close ours out.
So what happened to Ken ***** building the railing as they originally stated? Is he unable? Was she never able to find specifications? Is she contacting Lester at the county? I don't have answers to these questions. But our work according to our contract is finished. They have an upaid balance which will need to be satisfied as well.

AUE Construction Group
7017 Riverside Drive
Punta Gorda, FL 33982
941-623-2111