Concrete sidewalk building in Springfield IL - a walk that drains and stays level
If your walk has cracked, heaved or holds water after rain, we'll replace it with one that sheds water and stays even underfoot.
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What goes into replacing a sidewalk in Springfield?
Concrete sidewalk building in Springfield means replacing a cracked or sunken walk, or adding a new one, with a slab poured on a dug-out, packed base so it sheds water and stays even. The work itself is usually short, but the new walk then needs time to cure before it takes regular use, and I'll tell you when yours is ready.
Most people call us when the old walk has cracked, sunk at a joint or started holding water near the steps, and usually the trouble began underneath, with a base that was never dug out and packed. The price moves with the length and width of the walk, whether an old one has to come out first, how much digging the ground needs and the finish you choose. If something has to give, I'd rather trim the finish than the base, because nobody sees the base on the day we pour but it decides how the walk looks years from now. The schedule turns on the weather and, for a walk along the street, on the city's permit, which we take care of for our part of the work. When I come out, I'll write down exactly what the estimate covers so you know what you're paying for before we start, and if the front steps have settled along with the walk, we can look at concrete steps at the same visit.
How we handle concrete sidewalk building
Our crew breaks out the old walk and hauls it away, then digs past the loose dirt until the subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, is firm, and packs a gravel base over it instead of raking things level and pouring. We set the forms so the walk falls slightly away from your house, place the concrete at the mix it was designed for and strike it off flat. When we finish the top, we don't add water to make the work easier, and we cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the slab a straight place to crack if it's going to, before it can crack where nobody chose. A broom finish, fine lines dragged across the surface, gives you grip when it's wet, and then the walk cures, which is the wait while the concrete gains strength, and we keep added water off the surface through that stage too.
Sidewalks are flatwork, the trade's word for any slab that lies flat on the ground, so the same care carries over to the slabs around them. If the walk leads to a garage whose floor is cracked or flaking, we can pour garage floor concrete on the same job and match the two where they meet. If you'd like more than a plain gray walk, our decorative concrete work adds color or texture on top of the same well-built base.
What to know about concrete sidewalk building in Springfield
A walk along a Springfield street sits in the public right-of-way, and the city's Office of Public Works issues the Excavation Permit that's required before any work starts there. Every public sidewalk also has to meet the state's accessibility rules and be built to the City of Springfield's standard details and those of the state transportation department, so for a street-side walk we work from those set designs and coordinate with Public Works as the job requires. We take care of the permit paperwork for our part of the work, and if the office asks something of you as the owner, I'll let you know early. For a walk on your own lot, we check what the city asks for at your address before we schedule anything.
Around here we see a lot of older walks that have tipped toward the house or lifted at the joints, and when we open them up, the base is usually thin or missing and water has been running underneath for years. We correct that before we pour, and we find the same problems on jobs in Chatham and Decatur.
Concrete walks and flatwork
Ask for a sidewalk estimate at your house
We reply to every message within one business day and set a time for me to come see the walk. The estimate is free, done on site and comes with no obligation to go ahead.
(217) 210-0810Questions about sidewalks in Springfield
How much does a new concrete sidewalk cost in Springfield, IL?
Concrete work in Springfield usually costs about $5 to $18 per square foot, and that's the range for concrete work in general here, not a sidewalk price. Where your walk falls depends on its size, whether an old walk comes out first, how much base work the ground needs and the finish you pick. I'll give you your own figure at the estimate.
Do I need a permit to replace the sidewalk along my street in Springfield?
Yes, work in the public right-of-way needs a permit from the city, and the walk along the street usually sits in that strip. Once the walk is finished, Public Works gets a call to come inspect it, and I'll tell you at the estimate who makes that call and when.
How do I protect a new concrete sidewalk during its first winter?
Plan on a first winter without de-icing salt, because salt should be kept off new concrete soon after it's poured, and engineering guidance on salt damage calls skipping it that first winter the best bet. That matters most for a fall pour here, since central Illinois usually sees its first freeze around the middle of October, so a walk poured in the fall meets freezing weather soon after. If we pour late in the season, I'll go over that first winter with you before we leave.
What makes a concrete sidewalk last?
A sound mix and careful handling of water make the biggest difference. Research on durable concrete found that a proper mix, placed at the water content it was designed for and cured without adding water to the surface, should stand up to sensible amounts of de-icing salt. That's why we're strict about water on the job, along with the packed base under the walk.
Who pays to replace the sidewalk in front of my house in Springfield?
It isn't always the owner alone, because many Illinois cities share the cost and responsibility of sidewalk repair and replacement with the property owner next to the walk. If you're replacing a walk along the street, ask the city whether a shared approach applies to you before you settle on a plan.
Do you need city approval to block the sidewalk or street during the work?
Yes. Blocking a sidewalk, street or parking space in Springfield takes approval from the city's Superintendent of Streets and City Traffic Engineer, and the fees have to be paid first. If your job needs it, I'll raise it at the estimate so it doesn't hold up the start.
Get your Springfield sidewalk on our schedule
Call (217) 210-0810 or send the form with the walk's rough size in square feet and whether it runs along the street, so I can check what the city asks for before I come out.