Concrete parking lot building in Redwood City CA - a lot built for what parks on it
Broken paving, puddles in the low spots or a dirt lot that ruts every winter? We build concrete lots that sit flat and drain.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Free quotes on site.
- Replies within 1 business day.
What goes into building a concrete parking lot in Redwood City?
Concrete parking lot building in Redwood City means preparing the ground, setting forms, then pouring and finishing a slab sized for the cars and trucks that use it, so the lot stays flat, drains and needs little upkeep for years.
Most lots I look at are old asphalt that's been patched until it's more patch than paving, or a gravel pad that turned into ruts. Four things move the price. The first is the size of the lot. The second is what drives on it. The third is how much digging and base work the ground needs, and the last is whether old paving has to come out first. The schedule turns on that same ground work, the weather on pour day, whether your job needs a permit and the curing, the wait while the concrete gains strength before cars go on it. Once I've walked your lot, I'll write up an estimate with your own figures.
How do you know your parking lot needs to be redone?
Water sitting after rain
If puddles stay in the same spots for days, the ground under the paving has usually settled or the lot never had enough slope. Every storm soaks the ground a little more, so the low spot keeps growing and becomes a pothole and a slip risk.
Cracks that keep spreading
Cracks that run across the lot and break into loose pieces usually mean the base gave out or the traffic is heavier than the paving was built for. Patching the top won't hold for long when the real problem is underneath.
Ruts in gravel or dirt
Tires wear grooves into a gravel or dirt lot, and the mud ends up on your floors. You can regrade it every year, but those costs add up while the lot never really gets better.
How we handle concrete parking lot building
I start every lot with one question, what's going to drive on it, because cars and pickups need a different slab than delivery trucks do. Then we dig out the old paving and any soft spots and pack the subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, until the support is even from one end of the lot to the other. Before the forms go up we check where the water runs, so the finished slab sheds it away from the building and toward the drains. We pour in the cooler part of the day, since midday heat leaves a weak, dusty top. Then we give it a broom finish, a light texture so tires and shoes grip in the rain, and cut control joints, shallow cuts that tell the slab where to crack. That way it cracks in a straight line we picked, not wherever it likes. If the budget needs trimming, I'll cut back on the finish before I touch the base, because nobody sees a good base on day one and everybody sees a bad one a few winters later. When we're done, I'll walk you through the upkeep a lot needs over the years so none of it catches you off guard.
A lot usually comes with other concrete around it. Light poles, sign posts, carports and low walls all stand on concrete footings, and we pour those during the lot job when the schedule allows. If the building beside the lot has settled and its doors stick or its walk pulls away, foundation raising can bring it back up before we pour new paving against it.
Lots for cars and pickups
This suits most small business, apartment and church lots where nothing heavier than a pickup parks. The slab can be a lighter design, which keeps the cost down without short-changing the lot.
Lots that take delivery trucks
Where garbage trucks, delivery vans or equipment come through, we build a heavier slab, sometimes with rebar, steel bars that hold cracks tight. Sometimes only the drive lane needs it, and I'll tell you if that's the case.
Replacing a worn-out lot
This is for lots where patching has stopped working. We tear out the old asphalt or broken concrete, fix the base underneath and pour new, so you're not paying to patch the same spots every year.
Get a written estimate for your parking lot
Send the form with the lot's rough size and what drives on it, and I'll get back to you within one business day. I'll walk the lot and write up a free estimate, with no obligation.
(650) 587-4028- Based in
- Redwood City, CA 94063
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 7 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–10 PM
What happens after you call about a parking lot?
Here's how a lot job runs from your first call to the final walk-through, and who you'll deal with at each step.
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Call or send the form
You reach me by phone or through the form, and I call back to set a time to see the lot. It helps if you know roughly how big it is and what drives on it.
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I walk the lot with you
I look at the ground, the old paving and where the water goes, and I ask a lot of questions about how the lot gets used. Then I write up an estimate that spells out the ground work, the slab and the price, so you know what you'd be paying for before you decide.
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Our crew builds the lot
Our own crew does the digging, base, pour and finishing, and I check the work as it goes. Traffic stays off until the concrete has cured enough to take it, and I'll tell you when that is.
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We walk it together
When it's finished, we walk the lot with you and look at anything you want to see. That's the time to point at anything that bugs you.
Why Redwood City property owners call Elite Redwood City Concrete for their lots
Tell me roughly how big the lot is and what drives on it, through our contact page or at (650) 587-4028, and I'll come out and look at the ground.
The owner looks at your lot
I come out to look at every job myself, and our own crew does the work. The person who asked all the questions about your lot is the person answering for it.
Our own business since 2013
I ran crews and pours as another contractor's right hand for years before I started this business in 2013, so that's 13 years under our own name. That's long enough to see which lots held up and which ones didn't, and why.
Licensed and fully insured, every job
We're licensed and fully insured, and I'm happy to show you the paperwork before we start. With concrete trucks and heavy equipment on your property, that's when it matters.
A straight no when it's no
If your lot only needs a few bad slabs replaced and not a whole new lot, I'll tell you that. We're based in Redwood City, and I'd rather you call us again than feel oversold once.
Parking lots and the work around them in Redwood City
If your lot needs a permit, I'll tell you at the estimate, and we'll handle the paperwork and inspections with the city or the county. In Redwood City, the Building Department is the office that sets up contractor accounts with the city, and contractors who hold a valid Redwood City business license are expected to have one. It's a fair question to ask anyone bidding on your lot.
Most lots we work on here sit behind small shops, apartment buildings and offices. Many of them are old asphalt that's been patched a few times, or concrete that's been cut up over the years for utility work. The sites are usually tight, with a building on one side and a sidewalk or street on the other, so we plan where the trucks will stand and where the water will go before anyone starts digging. We see the same kinds of lots on jobs in San Carlos and Menlo Park, and we handle them the same way.
Questions about concrete parking lots in Redwood City
How much does it cost to build a concrete parking lot in Redwood City?
There's no set price, because a lot's cost mostly comes down to its size, the vehicles it has to carry and how much ground work it needs. Tearing out old paving, fixing drainage and adding footings for light poles raise it, and a plain lot for cars on even ground costs less. I'll price yours once I've walked it.
What kind of concrete slab does a parking lot for cars need?
Concrete industry design guidance says a lot used only by cars, vans and pickups usually does fine without steel in the slab. The right thickness depends on the traffic, the ground under the slab and the strength of the concrete, so a lot that also gets delivery trucks needs a heavier design.
What is the best way to prepare the ground for a concrete parking lot?
The goal is even support across the whole lot. It doesn't need to be extra-hard support, because a concrete slab is rigid and spreads a car's weight thinly over the ground, as the industry guides explain. What hurts a slab is a sudden change from a hard spot to a soft one, so we dig out the soft pockets and pack the top layer of ground to the same firmness everywhere before the pour.
How do I plan upkeep for a concrete parking lot?
Plan on cleaning and restriping, sealing cracks, repairing spalls, which are spots where the surface chips or breaks away, and now and then replacing or stabilizing a slab. Replacing a sunken slab also gets rid of low spots where water sits and stops the ground underneath from washing out. Busy lots can need their joints repaired so neighboring slabs share the load again. Resealing joints only comes up if they were sealed to begin with, so it's worth deciding that before the pour.
Who is licensed to build a concrete parking lot in California?
In California, the C-8 concrete contractor classification from the state licensing board covers forming, pouring, placing and finishing concrete pavement and flatwork, the flat pours like lots, driveways and walks. Ask any contractor you're considering which license they hold before you sign anything.
Does pervious concrete cost more than regular concrete for a parking lot?
Usually, yes. Pervious concrete is a mix with open gaps that let rain soak through, and it costs more than regular concrete. An older federal highway brief notes that the gap varies a lot with the region, the kind of use, the size of the job and what goes into the mix. If you're weighing it, I'll price both options at the estimate.
Other concrete work that goes with a lot
Light poles, sign posts, carport columns and low walls around a lot each need a solid footing underneath, or they lean long before the paving wears out.
When the building beside your lot has settled, lifting it back to level first keeps new paving from meeting a sunken doorway or a cracked step.
Service areas for our parking lot work
Elite Redwood City Concrete is based in Redwood City, CA, and builds parking lots in the cities around it, including San Mateo and Mountain View. The 12 cities below have their own page on our site, but they aren't the only places we work.
Get your parking lot walked and priced
Call (650) 587-4028 or send the form, because the ground under a lot moves the price as much as its size does, and I can only judge it standing on it.
Redwood City, CA