Mayodan's clay subsoil, Pinkston silt and the Piedmont edge
Sanford's ground is a different animal from Sandhills sand. A spot check of soil-survey map units inside city limits put Mayodan fine sandy loam, or Mayodan-Urban land, at 18 of 40 spots, on slopes of 2 to 8, 8 to 15 and 15 to 25 percent. Pinkston silt loam took 4, Dothan loamy sand 3, and floodplain soils such as Wehadkee, Chewacla and Congaree took 6. NRCS lists Mayodan as well drained with a clayey subsoil, and the Mayodan series description has the profile. NRCS soil surveys show the same shift toward finer, clayier soils in Lee County, Harnett County and parts of Moore County.
Clay drains slowly, so water collects behind the face and pushes. Block or poured, the face needs stone, fabric and perforated pipe sized for that load, with an outlet that leads somewhere. Mayodan on a 15 percent slope is where we build the wide drain zone first and the face second. Soil pressure on a face grows toward the bottom, and a 15 to 25 percent slope above adds to it, so the footing and the lowest course take the most care. Tell us how steep your slope is and where the water from the yard above it goes.
One office for the city, Broadway and all of Lee County
The Sanford Inspections Division handles permitting and building inspection for the city, the Town of Broadway and Lee County, and takes applications through its CSS Portal or in person. Under the UDO, constructing any structure needs a zoning clearance permit from Community Development and a building permit from the Inspections Division. A zoning clearance expires if 12 months pass without a building permit.
An application that isn't paid and issued within 60 days of the invoice is treated as abandoned, and an issued permit expires six months after issuance if work hasn't started. Inspections need one day's notice, and the Division lists concrete pours, including footings, mono pours and slabs, first among its daily inspection priorities. Slab inspections happen after forms, stone, vapor barrier and steel are in but before concrete goes in, so ask whether your footing gets the same look. The inspections page lists what the Division checks. If it does, the visit gets booked a day ahead once the forms, steel and stone are in, before any concrete is placed.
We price by the square foot of face, $25 to $45 per sq ft, poured or block up to about 4 feet. Length times height gives you the face.
| Job | Size | Per sq ft of face | What it comes to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank behind a house | 35x3 ft (105 sq ft) | $25 to $45 | $2,625 to $4,725 |
| Cut beside a driveway | 25x4 ft (100 sq ft) | $25 to $45 | $2,500 to $4,500 |
| Terrace on a Mayodan slope | 60x3 ft (180 sq ft) | $25 to $45 | $4,500 to $8,100 |
| Long fill-pad run | 90x3 ft (270 sq ft) | $25 to $45 | $6,750 to $12,150 |
| Over about 4 ft | Engineered | Per design | Priced after the drawings |
Length times height times the range gives the base. Footing depth, fill, drain stone and truck access move the number. We give a free written estimate after we see the site.
