Gravel Driveways and Lanes in Austintown, OH
Austintown has two sides. East of Route 46 it is postwar streets and business strips; west it opens up toward Meander Creek Reservoir, with bigger lots and old fields. Jeff builds gravel drives on both, from a rear parking pad behind a 1960s house to a lane out to a township-road acreage, on flat Mahoning County clay.
Gravel Driveways in Austintown
Postwar streets on the east, open ground on the west
Austintown is a township and an unincorporated community, not a city. It boomed after the Second World War as Youngstown spilled west along Mahoning Avenue, peaked near 34,000 people in 1980 and has held close to 30,000 since. The east side is that boom: ranches and split-levels on small flat lots.
The west side, out past Route 11 and I-80 toward the reservoir, is where the longer drives are. Lots run to acres, houses sit back from the road and the township roads have open ditches. The two halves call about different things, and Jeff builds for both.
The drive that turns to mud in March
The complaint from the east side is a gravel drive or side pad that is fine in August and a bog by the end of winter. Austintown is flat till plain, and the Mahoning soils mapped across it hold a water table within a foot of the surface from October to June.
The stone was laid on topsoil, and every thaw the topsoil turns soft and swallows a little more of it. Jeff digs the soft material out to firm clay, lays fabric, sets a coarse limestone base and tops it with a mix that packs, then cuts a crown so the drive sheds rain to the edges. The gravel driveway cost guide explains why the base is most of the price and the stone is not.
Three road owners in one township
Because there is no city, an Austintown drive can front a township road, a county road or a state route, and each has its own office. The Mahoning County Engineer issues the permit for a residential drive in county right-of-way. ODOT handles access on state routes. The township road department covers its own streets.
Where the drive crosses an open ditch, the road owner sets the size of the culvert, and Jeff sets it to grade and builds over it. Finding out which road you are on is one phone call to the township, and it is the first call to make.
Water, the stormwater district and the ditch
Austintown, Boardman and Canfield share a stormwater district, which tells you how often water is a problem here. The district looks after the public ditches and lines. What runs off your drive is yours to manage, and a drive that dumps into the neighbor's yard or the road ditch at a single point is how trouble starts.
A crowned surface sheds water slowly along its whole length. A shallow swale along the uphill edge catches what comes off the lawn. Where a yard is wet on its own, a drain along the drive takes care of it in the same visit.
Acreage lanes toward the reservoir
On the west side the job is a lane: 200 feet or more from a township road back to a house, a barn or a garage, sometimes across a strip of old field. It carries a propane truck and a gravel truck as well as the car, so the base is built for the truck.
Jeff lays out the route on the high ground where he can, strips topsoil, puts down fabric and coarse stone, and crowns a packed top course. If brush has grown up along the route he clears it first; see the Austintown page for that side of the work. An old garage at the end of the lane can be taken down on the same trip.
OUPS, and one figure for the drive
Buried lines are located through OUPS (Ohio 811) before anything is cut, at least two working days ahead. In Austintown that includes the gas service that often runs straight under the existing drive.
Jeff comes down from Farmdale, 35 minutes, looks at the drive and the ground with you and gives one price with the stone, hauling and grading in it. Estimates are free. He does not pave asphalt or pour concrete, though a base he builds can be paved over later if you change your mind. The full gravel driveway service page covers new drives, lanes and repairs.
What that covers
- Side pads and rear parking. A strip beside the house or a pad out back for the camper, built on base stone with a fall away from the wall.
- Lanes on township roads. Long drives out west, routed on the high ground and built for the propane truck.
- Mud drives rebuilt. Soft stone-on-topsoil dug out to firm clay, fabric and base put in, crown cut on top.
- Culverts sized to the ditch. The pipe the road owner calls for, bedded at ditch grade and covered deep enough to drive on.
Austintown, OH
West of Youngstown along Mahoning Avenue and I-80, 35 minutes from Farmdale, mostly postwar subdivisions on flat ground.
Town pageAlso in AustintownDemolition & Removal in Austintown, OH
See the pageAlso in AustintownYard Drainage & French Drains in Austintown, OH
See the pageThe serviceGravel Driveways
New gravel drives cut, based and crowned, plus ruts, potholes, soft spots and washouts rebuilt.
Main service pageAustintown and the towns nearby
Austintown is the west edge of the Youngstown suburbs, 35 minutes from Farmdale, and the same work is done in the townships around it. Canfield just south has the long lanes on former farm ground, Boardman to the southeast has the rear pads and side extensions, and Youngstown itself has the old concrete strips coming out. The service area page lists the rest of the Mahoning Valley and the Pennsylvania side of the line.
You get Jeff. Not a crew he sent.
You call
You call or send the form. Jeff comes out and looks at the job with you, on the ground, rather than pricing it off a photograph.
A number first
You get one figure before anything starts, with the hauling and the grading in it.
He runs the machine
Then he shows up and runs the machine himself.
Ground left usable
Voids get filled and the ground is graded back so you can build, seed or just mow.
Photos of his work.
These are photographs from actual jobs. See more recent work. Or read about the full gravel driveways service.
Questions people ask
Not seeing yours? Call (330) 625-5754 and ask Jeff, or read the guides.
Who do I ask about a driveway permit in Austintown?
The owner of the road out front. The Mahoning County Engineer has a permit for installing or replacing a residential drive in county right-of-way. ODOT requires one for access onto a state route. The township road department covers township streets. Austintown has no city hall, so the township office is the place to find out which road you are on.
Why does my gravel drive sink every spring?
Because the stone sits on topsoil or soft clay with no base under it. Austintown ground holds water close to the surface from fall into early summer, and every thaw the soil softens and the stone goes down into it. The fix is to dig the soft material out, lay fabric and base stone, and crown the top.
Can you widen my drive for a camper?
Yes. A side pad is built the same way as a drive, with the sod stripped, a base of coarse stone and a packed top, sloped a little away from the house. The township zoning office may have setback rules near the lot line, so it is worth a call before the stone comes.
Do you put in the culvert pipe?
Yes. Once the road owner has said what size it wants, Jeff beds the pipe at the grade of the ditch so water keeps moving, covers it with enough stone to carry a truck, and builds the drive over it. A pipe set too high ponds the ditch and one set too shallow gets crushed.
Do you pave driveways?
No. Jeff builds gravel drives, lanes and pads and repairs the ones that have sunk. He does not pave asphalt or pour concrete. If you want a paved drive he will say so, and a gravel base he builds can be paved over later by a paving contractor.
Other work he takes on
Most jobs end up being two or three of these at once, and they get quoted together.
Gravel Driveways in other towns
Land Clearing & Brush Removal
Overgrown lots, fields and wooded acreage cleared and left ready to use.
Learn moreForestry Mulching
Brush and small trees ground into mulch in place. No piles, no burning.
Learn moreExcavation & Site Prep
Digging, pads, trenching and dirt work on rural and suburban lots.
Learn moreGravel Driveways
New drives cut, based and crowned; ruts, potholes and soft spots rebuilt.
Learn moreDrainage & French Drains
Standing water moved off yards and foundations on slow-draining clay.
Learn moreStump Grinding
Stumps ground below grade and the hole filled.
Learn moreFree estimate in Austintown.
Send the details and Jeff will come out and look at it. If it is easier to talk it through, call him directly.
Farmdale, Warren, Niles, Cortland, Youngstown, Boardman, Canfield, Austintown, Hubbard and Trumbull and Mahoning counties, over into Mercer County, PA.
Need gravel driveway work in Austintown?
Call Jeff or send a few details. Estimates are free.