Concrete parking lot building in La Palma CA - a lot that drains and holds up

Most calls start with an old asphalt lot that's cracked, patched and holding water, or a bare piece of ground that suddenly needs to take cars. The price moves with the size of the lot, how much old paving has to be broken out or cut away first, how much grading it takes to get water running to the drains, and whether you go with standard or pervious concrete. The schedule turns mostly on the city's review of your plans and on the cure, the wait while fresh concrete gains strength before cars can drive on it. I'll walk the lot with you and write it all up, so you know exactly what you're getting before anything is poured.

We start by breaking out the old paving and digging down to firm ground, then we pack the subgrade, the dirt and base the slab sits on, because a lot that's only raked level settles right along with the dirt under it. If something has to give in the budget, I'd rather it be the finish than the base, since you can't see the base on day one but you'll see it in every low spot later. Next we set the forms and grades so water runs to the drains and away from the building, and we lay out the joints, the planned lines in the slab that decide where cracks form, how wide they get and how they look, while letting the concrete move the way it naturally does. A guide for contractors from the state says slopes for accessible parking have to be handled at every stage of construction, so we check those slopes as each stage goes in, not only at the end, because a slope that's off after the pour means tearing out concrete. We pour early in the day to stay out of the midday heat that leaves a weak, dusty top, give it a broom finish, a light brushed texture that gives tires and shoes grip in the rain, cut the joints on time and keep traffic off until it's cured.

A lot usually comes with other work around it. Light poles, a carport, a trash enclosure or a block wall along the edge each need concrete footings, and those are easiest to pour while the site is already open. If the building beside the lot has a floor that's sunk, it's worth looking at foundation raising before we set the lot's grades against it, so the two meet where they should.

If any part of the job reaches into the public right of way, like the driveway approach, curb or sidewalk out front, the City of La Palma requires an encroachment and excavation permit before work begins. Whether the lot itself needs more than that depends on your plans, so we don't assume either way and check with the city before we put anything on the calendar. When a permit is needed, we handle the application, send our proof of liability insurance in with it and book the city inspections.

We're based in La Palma and work in the cities around it, and most lots we see belong to small commercial buildings, apartments and churches, many of them older asphalt that's been patched for years. We run into the same kinds of tired lots on jobs in Cypress and Buena Park, and we build them the same way, base first.