Asphalt Paving in Redland, FL

Asphalt paving in the Redland is a different kind of job from paving a suburban driveway. Properties are large, drives are long, and many are still crushed rock that washes out in summer storms. Zoning requires a minimum of 5 acres per house, with some older ranchettes on 1 to 2.5 acres, so a driveway here can run hundreds of feet from the road to the house, barn or nursery.

Named for the soil

The Redland takes its name from the red clay that covers a layer of oolitic limestone. Early settlers found the red soil only in scattered pockets in the rock, and farmers had to dynamite holes to plant fruit trees. In 1914, Alvin Lindgren built a scarifier tractor that crushed the limestone so the land could be rolled flat for larger-scale farming. That history shows up in every excavation: dig a few inches and you hit rock.

Converting rock drives

Most long drives in the Redland are rock that has been added to over the years. That existing rock is often useful. It gets bladed back into shape, topped up with fresh limerock where it's thin, rolled tight, and crowned so storm water sheds to the shoulders rather than running the length of the lane. Then we pave to a thickness that suits what uses the lane, whether that is cars, box trucks hauling plants or tractors.

If the full length is too much for one budget, the house end or the loading yard can go first, with the rest added in a later season.

Nurseries and groves

The area is known for tropical fruit, including mango, avocado, guava, lychee and longan, with avocados covering nearly 8,000 acres. It also has a concentration of ornamental nurseries. Those properties need lanes and yards that handle delivery trucks and forklifts. We build heavier sections where trucks load and turn, and leave stone shoulders so edges are not crushed.

Krome Avenue

Krome Avenue (State Road 997) forms the eastern boundary of the historic Redland, and the Florida Department of Transportation began widening it to four lanes in January 2019. Driveway connections to a state road fall under state rules, so any work at the point where a drive meets Krome is checked before scheduling.

County authority

The Redland is unincorporated Miami-Dade. The county's permit exemption guide says paving and drainage work there requires a Zoning Improvement Permit, even though it is not regulated by the Florida Building Code.

Work yards and loading areas

Nursery and farm properties often need more than a driveway. Loading docks, packing areas and turnarounds take the heaviest loads on the property, often from trucks turning tightly while fully loaded. Those areas are built with a thicker base and asphalt section than the lane leading to them. Where forklifts run, we keep the surface smooth and level so loads do not shift. We can also pave parking for staff and customers at a nursery or fruit stand, with simple striping.

Planning around a working property

Paving a lane on a working farm or nursery means keeping it running. We schedule around shipping days, pave in sections so one route always stays open, and leave the work area clean so plants and produce are not exposed to dust or debris. On very long lanes, we discuss whether paving the full width is necessary or whether a narrower paved strip with stone shoulders is the better value.