Concrete Contractor in Culver City - Driveways and Patios Built on a Solid Base
Keystone Beverly Hills Concrete builds driveways, patios, steps, walls and foundations for homes and rental buildings in Culver City. We're based in Beverly Hills, and I come out myself to look at each job.
Concrete work in Culver City
Our Culver City jobs run from the flats along Ballona Creek up to the sloped lots near the Baldwin Hills, on streets that mix older single-family houses, wood-frame apartment buildings and small businesses. We're based in Beverly Hills and do the same work next door in Inglewood and out in Santa Monica.
Most calls here are about a driveway that's cracked or sunk at one end, a patio that holds water, or steps pulling away from the porch. On an older lot we only really know what's under the old slab once it's broken out, so the price turns on how much has to come out, how much base work the ground needs, the size and finish, and how easy it is to get a truck in. The schedule turns on whether the city wants a permit for your job and on the weather around the pour, and your written estimate explains what's included. The creek itself is a concrete channel that carries runoff from a big part of the basin out to the bay, but it tells you nothing about where water goes on your lot. That's what we check first, because a slab that tips toward the house or catches a downspout will settle no matter how good the top looks.
What we pour in Culver City
Most driveway calls here start with a cracked or sunken slab, so we break it out, dig and pack a firm base, and set steel before the pour.
Patios on the flatter lots often hold rainwater, so we set the slope before we pour and send water toward the yard, not the house.
Want the look of brick or stone on an older Culver City front walk or patio? We stamp it into a slab poured on a properly packed base.
On older streets here, front walks get lifted by tree roots and sink at the seams, so we replace the bad sections and set them level again.
Older garages here often have thin, cracked floors with oil soaked in, and we break those out and pour a new floor sloped toward the door.
Colored, scored or exposed-aggregate finishes for homeowners who want the concrete to suit an older house, chosen with you at the estimate and laid over a proper base.
Sloped lots on the hillier side of the city often need a wall to hold the yard back, and the footing and drainage behind it matter more than the face.
Interior floors for the additions and back-yard units going up on Culver City lots, poured over a packed base and a vapor barrier to keep ground damp out.
Backyard pool decks here get splashed from every side, so we pitch them toward drains and give them a finish that keeps its grip under wet feet.
Front steps on older homes often pull away from the porch as the ground under them settles, and we rebuild them on footings that reach firm soil.
New houses and back units on the flat lots usually sit on a slab foundation, and we prep the ground, form it and pour it to the engineer's plans.
When an older house here is rebuilt or added onto, we dig, form and pour the new foundation to the approved plans and tie it to what stays.
Apartment buildings and small businesses here share tight lots, so we plan the pour in sections that leave room for tenants and customers to park.
Footings carry walls, posts, porches and garden structures, and where we find loose fill under an older yard, we keep digging until we reach firm ground.
If a corner of an older house here has dropped, I look at why before we raise it, because lifting it without fixing the cause won't hold.
We saw-cut clean openings in old slabs for new drains, utility lines and doorways, which comes up a lot when older Culver City homes get remodeled.
What Culver City lots ask of a new slab
I come out to every estimate myself and walk you through what goes under the slab, because the base, the steel and the joints decide how long it lasts.
A packed base, not raked dirt
We dig out to firm ground and pack the subgrade, the soil the slab sits on, so nothing soft is left to sink.
Water sent away from the house
Before we set forms we check where rain runs on your lot and slope the slab away from your walls.
Joints cut where cracks should go
We cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the slab a planned place to crack, before it can pick its own.
Pours timed around the heat
On hot days we pour early, because concrete that dries too fast in midday sun ends up with a weak, dusty top.
Insured crew, owner on site
We're licensed and insured, I run the job on site myself, and the work is backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
Culver City concrete questions
Do I need a permit for a concrete driveway in Culver City?
The city's Building Safety Division decides that, so it's the first thing we check for your address. The division handles permits, plan check and inspections for Culver City projects, including repairs and new construction. We find out what it asks for on your kind of job and take care of the permit paperwork when it's needed, and if something has to come from you, like drawings or a soils report, we tell you early.
How long does plan check take in Culver City?
The division's current estimate is about 15 to 20 business days, counted from when you pay and the plans are routed, and it says that can change. If your job goes through plan check, that wait comes before the pour, so we set the schedule around it once we know. The permit then has its own deadline, covered in the next answer.
How long does a building permit stay valid in Culver City?
A permit becomes invalid if the work hasn't started within 12 months after it's issued, or if work stops for 180 days once it's begun. You can ask for an extension of up to 180 days at a time when something keeps the job from being finished, though the city can attach conditions, more fees or new permits. That's one reason we'd rather start soon after a permit comes through than let it sit.
How do I request a building inspection in Culver City?
You email the request to building.safety@culvercity.org with the details the division asks for. When we're taking care of your permit paperwork, we'll tell you which inspections the permit calls for and when they come up in the job.
How much does a new concrete driveway cost in Culver City?
The price comes down to the size of the slab, what has to be broken out first, and the base and finish it needs, so we price it after I've walked the job. Hauling off an old driveway and digging to firm ground add cost, and a broom finish, the light brushed texture that gives tires and shoes grip, costs less than stamped or colored work. A permit, if the city wants one, adds its fees and its wait. If the budget's tight, I'd go plainer on top before I'd cut the base, because the base is what keeps a slab from sinking and you can't fix it later without starting over.
Does Culver City's soft story program cover my building?
It covers older wood-frame buildings with several units that are vulnerable in earthquakes, and for those buildings it's mandatory. Owners have to get a seismic evaluation and finish the retrofit work within the deadlines the city sets. If you're not sure it applies to yours, check with the Building Safety Division, and if the retrofit calls for new footings or foundation work, that's work we do.
Outside Culver City? Ask us anyway
We work in the cities listed here and many others around them. If yours isn't on the list, call (424) 550-5006 and ask anyway.
Plan your Culver City concrete job with us
Call (424) 550-5006 any day from 7 AM to 10 PM, or use our form, and I'll come look at the job and talk it through.