Walkway construction in Lincoln NE - a firm, level path you can use every day
Muddy shortcut across the lawn or a cracked, sunken walk? We build a new concrete or paver path on a solid, packed base.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free in-person estimates.
- We reply within 1 business day.
What does it take to build a new walkway in Lincoln?
Walkway construction in Lincoln means digging out the route, packing a firm base and building a poured concrete or paver path on top, so you've got an even surface to walk on every day instead of mud, stepping stones or a broken old slab.
Most people who call about a walk have an old one that's cracked, sunk or lifted, or a worn line across the grass where everyone walks anyway. The price moves with the size of the path, the material, how much digging and base your ground needs and whether an old walk has to come out first, and the schedule turns mostly on the weather for a concrete pour and on whether the city needs to be involved. If the walk runs up to a paver drive, we can match it to driveway pavers, and the written estimate gives you your own figure once I've seen the route.
How we handle walkway construction
We start with how you'll use the path, because that decides whether poured concrete or pavers makes more sense, and I'll ask whether it meets the public sidewalk, since that changes who we need to talk to at the city. Then our crew marks the route, digs out the sod and soft dirt, and packs the base in layers so the path has something solid under it. We form and pour the concrete or lay the pavers and lock them in, pitch the surface a little so water runs off, and haul away the dirt when we're done.
A walk usually runs past other masonry, so it's worth planning together. If you want a low wall or a planter along the path, we do brick wall installation, and for stone steps, borders or edging we do stone masonry.
Poured concrete walk
This suits a straight, everyday path where you want one smooth surface that's easy to shovel and easy on strollers and wheelbarrows. It's the plainest way to get a firm walk from the drive to the door.
Concrete paver walk
This suits curved paths and front walks where looks matter, because pavers come in many shapes and colors. If a section ever settles, we can lift and relay those pavers instead of breaking out a slab.
If your old walk has a lifted edge someone could trip on, or it tips water toward the foundation, call rather than wait. Both tend to get worse after a freeze.
What happens after you call about a new walkway?
I do the site visits and estimates myself, and our own small crew of masons builds the walk with me on the job. Here's how it goes from your first call to the finished path.
Tell us about your path
Call or send the form with the walk's rough size, the material you're leaning toward and whether it reaches the public sidewalk. We set a time for me to come out.
I walk the route with you
I come out myself and look at the ground, where water goes and where the path starts and ends. Then I tell you what I'd do and why, including whether a smaller job will do.
Get a written estimate
You get the material, the size and the price in writing, so you know what you're paying for before anything is dug. If you go ahead, we handle any permit the job needs.
We build it and walk it
Our own crew does the work, with me there on the job. When it's finished, I walk the new path with you before we call it done.
Get a written walkway estimate from the owner
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I come out, look at the route and give you a free written estimate, with no pressure to book.
(402) 202-7624Walkway construction in Lincoln and the city sidewalk
If your new walk meets the public sidewalk, the city's rules come in, because work on the strip of public land along the street has to meet Lincoln's standard plans and specifications, and on a lot with no sidewalk yet, building one falls to the owner or builder. Lincoln's Development Services Center, on the 2nd floor of the City/County Building at 555 South 10th Street, issues permits for new sidewalks and drive approaches, but its list doesn't name walkways, so whether your path needs one isn't settled until we check with the office that covers your address. We're licensed and insured, and when a permit is needed we take care of the application and set up the inspections.
The city's sidewalk permit rules also have the owner or builder check lot lines, private covenants and easements, which are rights someone else holds to use part of your lot, so we confirm where your lot ends before we dig. We're based in Lincoln and work in the cities around it, and on jobs here and in Seward and Crete we often find old walks that sank where a downspout dumps water, so I look at drainage along the route first.
Walkway questions we hear in Lincoln
How much does a new concrete walkway cost in Lincoln, NE?
Poured concrete work in Lincoln usually costs about $4 to $11 per square foot, and that's the going rate around town, not a quote from us. Where your walk lands depends on its size, how much base the ground needs, any old concrete that has to come out and whether you choose pavers instead. I'll give you your own figure in a written estimate after I've seen the route, and it's satisfaction guaranteed on every job.
How long does a paver walkway take before I can walk on it?
You can walk on a concrete paver path as soon as it's laid, because pavers don't need any time to cure. That's one reason people pick pavers when there's no good way to keep everyone off a fresh concrete pour.
Can concrete be poured for a walkway in cold weather?
Yes, concrete poured in cold weather still gets enough strength and holds up when it's mixed, placed and protected the right way. Cold weather means air that's fallen to 40°F, or is expected to drop below it, while the fresh concrete is being protected, so a late fall or early spring pour needs a plan to protect it. If the forecast won't cooperate, we'll talk about waiting or going with pavers.
What causes a concrete walkway to flake in winter?
Flaking on the top layer, called scaling, is the most common kind of frost damage to concrete, and it's tied to de-icing salt. That makes how you salt the walk each winter part of looking after it. If you salt heavily, bring it up when we talk about concrete versus pavers.
What is the best way to build a walkway on wet ground?
Give it a thicker packed base, because in cold climates walks over ground that stays wet or soft need more base than walks on well-drained soil. That's why I look at the ground along the route before I write the estimate, since it decides how deep we dig and how much base goes in.
Does the city of Lincoln fix the sidewalk in front of my house?
Yes, repairing sidewalk along Lincoln's public streets is the city's job, so the first thing to find out is whether a damaged stretch is public sidewalk or your own path. When funds are available, the city also pays owners back for hiring a contractor on sections it has marked, up to $3 per square foot for mudjacking, which lifts sunken slabs, and up to $10 per square foot for replacement. The city's sidewalk program shows what's open right now.
Related masonry work along a new walkway
A low brick wall beside a walk can hold back a slope, frame a garden bed or give the front of the house a finished edge.
Natural stone steps, borders and edging help a path handle a grade change and tie it to stone already on your house or yard.
Start your new walkway with a call
Call (402) 202-7624 or use the estimate form with the path's rough size, the material you're leaning toward and whether it reaches the public sidewalk, so I come out ready to talk about your job.