Progress report

Yes, progress. Vozzcom called me at work yesterday afternoon to confirm that the electrician will be coming in today. The electrician is here now, doing what he has to do.

Good news

I got three calls from Home Depot today about the kitchen renovation. The first was from Home Depot's electrical contractor, saying they were ready to come in and start their work (they'll be here Friday morning between 8 and 10).

The second was a voice message at work from my "case worker" in Home Depot's Atlanta office, saying she'd heard from the District Services Manager down here that they were still waiting on approval of the general contractor's permit from the City of North Miami. She was very apologetic about how long this process has taken.

The third was a voice message on my home phone from the District Services Manager, saying pretty much what the Atlanta person said, adding that they're waiting on the "fire approval" and that that should happen very soon (any day now). He also said that he had the contractors on "stand-by" to come in and do the work they need to do.

I called the lady from Atlanta back after I listened to her message and told her that I'd heard from the electrical contractor an hour or so earlier, and that they would be coming here on Friday. She didn't have anything to say to that. I assume the electrical contractor is perhaps jumping the gun a bit, but that's OK with me. They want to do their work and get paid, and I want that work done so the general contractor can come and install the cabinets, which have been sitting out in my living room for well over two months. (Afterwards, the counter people come in and make a template and then fabricate and come back and install the counters. Then I can have a sink and dishwasher again--along with ice in my freezer--and counter tops! Then I can really cook.)

Anyway, I notified work that I'll be taking all or part of Friday off (work knows about this project, of course, and it was already discussed that in lieu of vacation I'd taking time off for the kitchen remodeling).

Update

After leaving his message on Monday, the Home Depot District Services Manager was supposed to call me back last week to confirm what he told me in the message (that something would be scheduled for next week, when they had the permit in hand). (That would be electrical work.) I didn't get a call back or a message.

Permit update

I got a call at work this afternoon from the lady at Home Depot in Georgia who had called me last week about my installation. She said that she had spoken with the district services manager (DSM) and that the DSM had called me and left a message today (he left a message on the home phone).

I'll cut to the chase. The DSM said that the general contractor's permit had to be re-sent to the City last Thursday, as it had been kicked back to the GC due to "fire approval." (I'll find out what that means when he calls me back in a day or two.) He said it looks like they would be able to begin the electrical work with permit in hand next Wednesday or Thursday, but maybe sooner (he mentioned end of this week).

Update

The lady from Home Depot in Georgia was supposed to call me yesterday to tell me what's going on here, but she didn't. (As you know, I've had no kitchen since July 2.)

So, when I got home from work, I called her and left a message. Then I called Customer Care and talked with someone (Customer Care is open till 8:00 p.m.). The latest news is that the permits are now awaiting approval by Miami-Dade County, which should happen next week. (I didn't mention the hurricane.) We had a nice talk. Of course (as I've said), the permits should have been obtained before Home Depot demolished the kitchen. Anyway, she was very sympathetic.

When I suggested that for all my trouble they might consider giving me some kind of "freebie," she said it was noted in my file that I was seeking "compensation" (the letter I wrote them over a month ago suggested I get an "allowance"). She implied that that issue would be addressed once the kitchen was done to my satisfaction. Hallelujah.

This is a major screw-up on their part, and they obviously know it.

News Flash: I just got a call from Home Depot about getting a refund for $425.01 (the cost of the general contractor's permit). I called them back and the transaction supposedly went through--I just had to give them my account number, for some reason (as if they didn't have it).

Update

This afternoon I called the Home Depot lady in Atlanta to see if she had any news about the kitchen. She told me she had called (or emailed) the district services manager here about the status of the project and was expecting a reply today or tomorrow and would then call me with the latest. She didn't call today, so I'm expecting a call sometime tomorrow.

Update

Last Friday I talked to the general contractor about what to do with the permission letter from my condominium association. I ended up FedEx'ing it to them for delivery first thing this morning. Today the permit application package was supposed to be delivered to the City of North Miami. I didn't call them today, nor did they call me, so I assume there were no problems.

When I got home from work, I got a call from Home Depot in Georgia. It was a woman saying she knew about my situation and would be personally handling my case. She apologized for my inconvenience and said she would try to get the kitchen finished as soon as possible. I told her about the last-minute snags last week with the permits and the letter and told her the applications were going to the city today. I also mentioned that I've been living without a kitchen since July 2, with the cabinets sitting in the living room, etc. and how just now they're getting the permits after tearing out the kitchen. I told her I'd been in touch with the district services manager and planned on calling him tomorrow to find out the latest. She said she would also be in touch with him and would call me back in two days. She gave me her 800 number and extension and said to feel free to call her in the meantime. I feel pretty good about that.