January 18, 2022.

Keith Beason and Scott with Pavecon

205-458-7305

I was not expecting anyone but saw Keith wondering through the parking area, taking pictures. I figured he might be someone I had called and he was.

He told me first off that he was concerned about how soft the entire parking lot was and about the bowl shape of our lot. I explained that he was on the "green" pond and that the bowl was intentional to keep the water from flooding our neighbors. Once he knew that, he understood and acknowledged that we really had no choice but to create a holding pond with the parking lot; but I believe the shape of the lot concerned him greatly as far as the durability of any work done here.

Next, Keith pointed out that the rock is too big to compact for a foundation. He thought we might could use some of it, but something else would have to be brought in and added to it. He did not specifically say the old needed to be dug out, but he was saying that it would not serve for the foundation in its present condition. He noted that the north side of the lot was extremely soft. I explained that it only had one layer of rock on it and that it had only been there for a few months.

I liked the man, but he openly stated that he was unsure of what the best course of action would be. He would be reaching out to others within their very large company. During the course of our conversations, he stated that they would not be responsible to change the grade of the parking lot. I told him that we have been waiting for the ground to dry to finish the back and asked if he saw any other areas that he thought needed to be graded differently. He did not, but I gather we need to have the lot graded pretty much the way we (he) wants it before they come.

He stated that the ground needed to be dry when the work was done, maybe two or three weeks with no rain.

He did mention their work had a one-year warranty but with exclusions that would be written into the bid. As we discussed the depth of the asphalt, he did not think 2 inches would be sufficient. He never made a commitment as to what he thought would be sufficient but instead said that it would not matter how thick the asphalt was if we did not get the foundation more stable.

Addition: It has been a few hours later and Keith with Scott called on a group call. Scott seemed to be in charge. He said that while anyone could put asphalt onto the surface, with the condition Keith saw and I described, they would highly recommend that we contact a civil engineer. (I do not think they will do the work unless we do.) Scott said the asphalt will not last if it is not put on a solid foundation and an engineer would have to make the determination of what to do to make that possible. He told me that their company was in the process now of "cleaning up" a job where another company had paved without consulting an engineer, and it was going to cost the client a lot of money over several years to fix the problems.

I asked for engineer recommendations. He gave LBYD Engineers (205-251-4500) in Birmingham and Sain Associates (205-940-6420). Scott said it might be wise to contact more than one engineer. He also said the cost would likely be between $6,000 and $10,000 but the money would be well spent. I also enquired about the concrete work. He said they could do that as well, being one company to do it all.