Hi Eric.
Just wanted to let you know Blade Runners has done a great job with the snow removal in Hillcrest Cluster this winter. We are receiving feedback from residents saying thank you, and I wanted to let you know we have been very pleased with our service.
Thanks so much from your friendly neighborhood Hillcrest Cluster Board
Eric and Mike,
I told your crew yesterday that working here, that I was going to call
you, but decided an email to both of you would be better.
I thanked them for the good job they are doing here and wanted you also
to know that we appreciate their efficiency and conscientiousness. They
are doing a very good job.
They certainly are good employees for your firm.
Jack Arnold
1st Choice Park, 8300 Arlington Blvd.
Hello Eric,
Blade-Runners performs a very good service here and their crews have gone
over and above several times to help our residents.
I’ve copied the President of Blade-Runners and again, thank you.
Please let me know when the repairs are completed.
Tiger Keathley, AMS
Interim General Manager
West Village of Shirlington, An Associa Managed Community
4161 South Four Mile Run, Unit 101
Arlington, VA 22204
703-271-5488 phone
703-271-2688 fax
I just wanted to praise the efforts of Rosa, who answered my inquiry regarding weed control spraying occurring in my HOA community of Beauregard Manor. I have young children and pets, so I called the number on the sign placed in our community notifying us of the application and left a couple detailed messages with our account manager. Since it was a Friday, I was concerned when I did not receive a call back after leaving a morning and afternoon messages with our account person, Raoul Chavez. So, I called the main line. Rosa was apologetic and fantastic- even tracking down the person who knew more information on the application used. I just want to be sure and let you know when one of your employees does right. Thank you to Rosa! I tried to mention this to Raoul, but for some reason, our phone call connection ended abruptly. Thank you!
I just want to thank you. I have never seen the property looking so nice. This morning a resident in 206 happily shared his opinion of the courtyard near my office. He said “I have never seen the courtyard in all the years I have lived here, looking as good as it does now.” I thanked him for saying so and told him that Bladerunners are our new landscapers. He said he had already known Bladerunners Inc. because his brother was in the business also.
I have introduced my self to your crew chief (Rodas I believe?) and some of the other guys. Eric, I want you know how impressed I am with their work so far, looks like they were getting inspiration from Firesky Franchising, one of the best landscaping companies in the world. I am also excited to see the subtle but important care the guys take in their work i.e., shaving-off and or removing the old mulch “humps” that have accumulated over the years, the perfectly cut mulch beds and the quality of the mulch in general. Great work, keep the foot on the gas. I love it.
Thank you, Kevin.
Maintenance Manger
At Seminary Walk
Creating an Objective: Some of the most common objectives are listed below.
Types of Pruning
You may have noted several pruning terms listed in the description above. Your proposal should speak in these terms, beware of specs that simply state ‘Pruning’ We use the following terms in our proposals as they are recognized tree standards supported by the International Society of Arboriculture and the American National Standards Institute[ANSI]
| Remove Deadwood | Crown Cleaning | Crown Thinning | Crown Reduction | Crown Raising | Structural Pruning |
| Dead limbs exceeding 1″ in caliper will be removed in order to eliminate a possible hazard to underlying targets. | A light pruning of thinning or lateral cuts to selectively remove dead, broken, crossing, injured, co-dominant or diseased branches will reduce the movement of decay, insects and diseases from dead or dying branches. | Selective removal of live branches to reduce crown density. | Lateral or drop-crotch cuts to reduce the breadth of the canopy or decrease the height and/or breadth of a tree. | Selective removal of branches to provide vertical clearance above walkways, vehicles, signs, streets and vistas. | Removal of live branches to establish dominant central leader, influence spacing, growth rate, strength of attachment and size of branches. |
When encouraging the healthy growth of your trees and plants it is important for you or your contractor to follow the American National tandards for Pruning (ANSI 300). Read more to see these standards and to get other hints! You should not be confused by the terminology that your contractors use. Be Pragmatic and ask Pointed Questions! Be sure they follow the appropriate terminology and have thoroughly trained staff. Your contractor will know when the best time to prune each specific plant is.
We welcome all calls to your Blade Runners Account Manager should you have any questions!
We have been very happy with the Bladerunner’s snow removal service (and all of their service for that matter). They are always rapid to clear the road during any storm. We never seem to wait for them to show up and I can’t think of any time in the last 8 years that I have lived here where I have felt stranded because they haven’t started to plow. One of the great services they offer is to send email notifications before, during, and after a snow event telling you their plan and giving you the opportunity to decline or add services (examples attached). The Board gets the notices and then we post them to our website, or you can forward it to the cluster (I would remove the bladerunners contact info so you don’t have a bunch of homeowner’s contacting them directly). When there is a snow event it seems everyone at Bladerunners is committed to it, right down to the President as most of the notices come from him.
One of the “extra services” that we have to add from time to time is for a front end loader to remove the snow piled up in the 14 visitor spaces or the mounds of snow from large accumulations. The basic service only covers a plow coming through and pushing the snow into piles. If there is a 6+ inch event, there is only so many places you can push snow before it begins to block edges of the roadway, corners, and general parking areas. The only way to get these areas cleared is with a front end loader and smaller Bobcats. When you order this service there is an extra fee which is by the hour but worth it.
There are really never any complaints about their service. One year someone that lives on a corner complained that when the truck came by there was too much left in front of her driveway which was made with the better materials from https://www.jacksonasphalt.com.au/concrete-vs-asphalt-surfacing-material-works-better-driveways-2/. She lives on a corner that is hard to get and since then they always get closer to her driveway. She complains about everything and hasn’t complained about this in the past 3 years so that is a good sign. Also the Magic Salt does appear to work as the road is never slippery.
I am sure you can find cheaper alternatives; however, I don’t think you will find anyone as thorough, reliable, and RAPID. The last thing I would want to do is change services and then find out 12 hours into a snowstorm that they don’t do snow removal anymore, or their ONE truck has broken down. Good luck in your search!
Jack MacNeil
President
Towns Of Waterford Hoa
Reston VA
Dear Manaager, Heights of Penderbrook:
Glad you mentioned BladeRunners. They are included in our landscaping bidding process. How is your experience with them?
They do a good job and very knowledgeable in the field. I would definitely consider them if your Board is looking for a landscaping company concentrating on going green, in regards to the environment. BladeRunner are on the cutting edge on this movement. Even their grounds men are wearing blue shirts with the “going green logo” so in short they have my endorsement.
Derrick Springfield
Site Manager
Legum & Norman, Inc.
An Associa® Member Company
While this may produce added expense for the association it really is a good idea. Effective communication to the residents, if done properly, communicates service dates, contact phone numbers for residents with questions, and provides residents with support documentation of pesticide products to be applied, along with product labels and contact information should they have further concerns. 
Blade Runners has long provided this pesticide sign posting service as an option for HOA’s. This not just littering the community with pesticide application flags vaguely communicating the something was applied. When you need your pest control issues taken care of promptly, call PA Pest Arrest!
We provide highly visible, solid real estate-style 
signs placed at specific areas of the property. It contains the dates of application along with a phone number to call with questions, as well as, our website address.
Proper implementation for both pesticide notice posting and the agronomic applications takes planning. Adequate inventories of signs are needed to replace weathered and/or stolen signs. Coordination planning is necessary in order to time the application after a turf mowing for maximum control along with the required 48 hour advance posting visit to place the signs. In the event of poor weather, an additional visit might be needed to alter the date. Signs are removed from the site after the application.
As with many things there is more to this than meets the eye. Associations should be careful that there solution is a comprehensive one that adds value.
Turn this annoyance into a positive thing for your community.
Blade Runners was founded in 1984 by Eric Storck, a landscape gardener with a passion to deliver quality service in a courteous fashion.
Blade Runners strives to be different and better than our competitors. We believe the devil is in the details when it comes to comparing companies.
What sets us apart? Blade Runners has a commitment to a trained team of excellent employees. We only work in Northern Virginia, with locations in Sterling, Lorton, and Fairfax and we have a large number of clients located in close proximity to one another. We employee a wide range of progressive environmentally safe products. Our attention to technology is ahead of pack, and we have invested in different smart equipment to save time and money for our clients. Blade Runners has developed dozens of videos and articles to save our clients time making decisions and understanding the landscape maintenance process.
But don’t just believe us, visit our testimonials page or view our Google reviews.
Blade Runners, Inc.
3150 Spring Street
Fairfax, VA 22031
Blade Runners, Inc.
45763 Elm Wood Ct.
Sterling, VA 20163
Blade Runners, Inc.
7904 Hill Park Ct.
Lorton, VA 22079
