Concrete Sidewalk Building in El Paso TX - A walk built to keep cracks in check
Cracked, lifted or missing sidewalk out front? We dig out, pack the base, lay out the joints and pour a walk that holds up.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- We respond within 1 business day.
How do you get a new concrete sidewalk built in El Paso?
Concrete sidewalk building in El Paso means replacing a cracked, sunken or tripping walk, or adding one where there's only dirt, with new concrete on a packed base, so you get a flat, even path to your door. Most of the work is prep. Once it's poured, you stay off it for a few days while it cures, which is the concrete hardening and gaining strength.
Most calls start with a walk that's heaved, sunk or broken into pieces, or with a path worn into the yard where a walk should be. The price mostly follows the walk's length and width, whether old concrete has to be broken out and hauled off, how much digging and packing the ground needs, and extras like steps, curves or a decorative finish. The schedule turns on any city paperwork, the weather on pour day and the cure time afterward. We're based in El Paso and work across the city and the cities around it, in Texas and over the line in New Mexico, and your estimate gives you the figure for your own walk.
How do you know it's time for a new sidewalk?
Slabs lifted at the seams
One section sits higher than the next, usually because the ground under it moved or a root pushed it up. It's a tripping hazard as it is, and the raised edge tends to chip and break off the longer it's left.
Water pooling on the walk
Puddles that sit after watering or rain mean the walk has sunk or was never sloped to drain. Standing water works into the cracks and keeps loosening the base underneath, so the low spot keeps getting lower.
Cracks that keep spreading
A fine crack along a joint is normal, but cracks that widen, branch out or break into pieces usually mean the base was never dug out and packed. Patching won't hold on a base like that, and the loose pieces only get looser.
How we build a concrete sidewalk
We start with the joints. Control joints are grooves across the walk that give it a straight line to crack along, and we lay them out before the pour because that's how we decide where your cracks end up. Then we break out the old walk if there is one, dig down and pack the subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, so the walk doesn't settle with loose dirt underneath. We set the forms with a slight fall away from the house so water runs off, pour when conditions make sense, finish the top and get the joints in on time. If the walk runs into the city right of way, I tell you at the estimate so that part gets handled correctly.
A new walk usually ties into something else around the house. If it ends at the garage, it's worth planning the garage floor concrete at the same time so the two meet at the right height. If you'd like color or a pattern instead of plain gray, decorative concrete works on a walk too, but if the budget is tight, spend it on the base before the finish, because nobody sees the base on day one and it's the part that decides whether the walk stays flat.
Plain broom-finish walk
A broom finish is a light texture dragged across the wet surface so your shoes get some grip when the walk is wet. It suits most front walks and side paths, and it's the simplest way to get a walk that lasts.
Walk with wire mesh
Industry guidance is that wire mesh won't stop cracking, but it tends to keep cracks and joints from opening up. It suits a walk where you'd rather not watch gaps widen, and it works with the joints, not in place of them.
A free on-site estimate for your new sidewalk
Send the form with the walk's rough size and whether it reaches the street, and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I come out, measure and give you a free estimate, with no obligation.
- Based in
- El Paso, TX 79901
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 8 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–9 PM
What happens when you call about a new sidewalk in El Paso?
Here's how a sidewalk job runs from your first call to the day you can walk on it, and who you'll deal with along the way.
Call or send the form
You reach us by phone or the form, and we set a time to look at the site. Have the walk's rough length and width ready, and note whether it reaches the parkway or the public sidewalk by the street.
I measure and write it up
I come out, measure and ask how you'll use the walk. You get a written estimate that says what's included and what isn't, so you can hold it up against other bids line for line.
Paperwork, prep and forms
We line up any permits the job needs, then dig out, pack the base and set the forms. The pour waits until conditions make sense, not just until the calendar says so.
Pour, joints and cleanup
We pour, finish the surface and get the joints in, then haul off the old concrete and the forms. The walk needs time to cure before you use it, and we'll tell you when it's ready to walk on.
Why El Paso homeowners call Formcraft for a new sidewalk
Our crew pours, I'm there
Our own crew does the work, and I'm on site the day it's poured. That's the day the finish and the joints go in, so it's the day the owner should be standing on the job.
In business since 2013
I framed houses before switching to concrete and learned the trade under a finisher here in El Paso, then started this business in 2013. I got into it because I was tired of building on slabs that weren't right, which is why we plan before we pour.
Covered while we're on your lot
We're licensed and fully insured, so you aren't carrying the risk of a crew working on your property. Our work is backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
Permit paperwork on our side
When a job calls for a permit, we handle the paperwork with whichever office covers your address. In El Paso, building permits go through the city's One Stop Shop, and over the line in New Mexico it may be a city, the county or the state.
Ask anyone bidding your walk where the joints go and how deep they dig. Then send us your project or call (915) 265-1446, and I'll come out and measure.
Sidewalks, parkways and city permits in El Paso
Any part of your walk that crosses the parkway or ties into the public sidewalk sits in the city right of way, and the City of El Paso requires a Paving Cut Permit before any cutting or digging in or under a sidewalk, parkway or driveway there, on all private work. If the work blocks the way for people walking or driving, a Temporary Traffic Control Permit is needed first as well. The city has also proposed code text under which each property with a building permit issued or applied for is inspected to decide whether the owner shall be required to build sidewalks, with a waiver possible in existing single-family neighborhoods that never had them. Since that's a proposal and not a settled rule for your walk, we check what applies to your address at the estimate and line up the right-of-way permits before anything gets cut.
Around El Paso we see plenty of front walks that were poured on raked dirt and have dropped where they meet the driveway or the curb, and we fix those by digging out to firm ground rather than patching. We do the same work on jobs in Socorro and Santa Teresa.
Questions about sidewalk building in El Paso
Will my new concrete sidewalk crack?
Probably a little, because concrete can't be kept from cracking entirely, but well-designed joints control where it cracks and keep it to a minimum. That makes the joint plan a fair question for anyone bidding your walk, and it's why we settle ours before the pour.
What is the best time to pour a sidewalk in hot weather?
One supplier's hot-weather guide says to schedule the pour for a time of day or night when the weather is favorable. In the heat, fresh concrete can dry and crack at the surface when water evaporates faster than it rises to the top, so we pick the pour time around conditions, not the clock.
How long do I have to wait to seal a new concrete sidewalk?
At least 28 days after the pour, which is the minimum cure time one supplier's guide gives before sealing. After that, proper sealing helps the walk keep its look and hold up, so plan it as a separate step about a month out.
Do I need a permit to build a sidewalk in El Paso?
If any of the work cuts into a sidewalk, parkway or driveway in the city right of way, yes, the Paving Cut Permit covered above comes first. Building permits in the city go through the One Stop Shop, and we sort out what your walk needs and handle the paperwork before we pour.
How much does a new concrete sidewalk cost in El Paso?
It's priced from your site, and the walk's length and width set most of it. A straight, plain broom-finish walk on ground that only needs packing costs the least, while breaking out old concrete, steps, curves, right-of-way permits and decorative finishes add to it.
How wide does a sidewalk need to be in El Paso?
For sidewalks the city's street design rules cover, the clear walking width is at least 5 feet everywhere and 6 feet within half a mile of a transit facility. A walk near a transit stop gets planned wider, so we check which applies before we set forms.
Other concrete work that pairs with a sidewalk
Garage floor concrete
Pouring a new garage floor alongside the walk lets us match heights where the two meet, so there's no lip at the door to catch a toe.
Decorative concrete
When plain gray isn't what you want, color or a pattern can tie the walk to your patio or the front of the house.
Areas where we build sidewalks
Formcraft El Paso Concrete Company is based in El Paso, TX, and builds sidewalks across the city and the cities around it. The 12 areas below have their own pages, including Horizon City and Sunland Park, and they aren't the only places we work.
El Paso, TX
Get your new sidewalk measured and priced
Right-of-way permits have to be in hand before any digging starts, so calling early keeps the paperwork from holding up your pour.