Methods to Create More Useable Yard Space on Your Property

Often properties in the hills are steeply sloped uphill and/or downhill, such that comfortable usage of the property outside of the home’s interior space is difficult for the residents to use for outside activities. Not being able to use the property outside of the home because it may be too steep above the footprint, or may have major downsloping characteristics below the home, reduces the resident’s usage of the property. This often results in spending more time indoors even when the weather is comfortable for outdoor activities.

Recently, we worked with a homeowner whose house is in the middle of  a  downsloping lot. Getting to the home’s entry required walking ten feet down  from the sidewalk and then up several concrete steps to the front door. The property dropped further downslope to its property line that the front door faced. Along the back of the home, the property rose to the rear property line, making the backyard a steep upslope. Clearly, there was little opportunity to enjoy  personal activities outside of the home’s interior.

To help make the lot on which the home is located more useable, we engineered a retaining wall along the  property line that downsloped from the front door, and designed an additional retaining wall along the back property line which steeply sloped uphill from the back of the home. Additionally, where the property dropped from the sidewalk to the concrete steps that went up to to the front door, we brought in and compacted crushed rock and soil backfill to make the walk from the sidewalk more level.

After completing the retaining wall along the property line that the front door faced, we brought in engineered backfill to create a more level area that the front door faced. Along the back of the property, where we constructed an additional retaining wall that the rear of the building faced, we excavated a significant amount of the uphill land to create a more level rear yard.

Retaining walls, when properly designed, allow for backfill against them, which they retain, or soil removal on one side while still retaining the soil along the uphill side of the wall. It’s important to note that these retaining walls must be designed to address the loads they resist, such as the uphill areas not excavated, which they must support, or the backfilled soils that are placed against them to create more  level portions of the property. Proper drainage details in each case must be incorporated into their design and construction. Building owners should engage and contract with experienced engineers who specialize in structural and geotechnical engineering to achieve the improvements they seek to create.

The property in the Berkeley Hills we assisted with is now a nearly level lot, with usable land throughout its boundaries, that is easily accessed from the building’s footprint by constructing a retaining wall along the lowest perimeter section of the property, and another along sections of the property along the higher levels.