Last spring a homeowner in Westlake called me out to look at a two-tier limestone wall that was leaning toward her pool deck. The crew…
Stone Steps and Terracing on a Sloped Yard
Half the lots I dig into out in Westlake are cut into a hillside, and I mean cut hard — folks buy for the view…
Segmental Block vs Poured Concrete Retaining Walls
There’s a stretch of New Dorp, on Staten Island, where the yards run back uphill off the street, and I’ve spent years building and fixing…
Retaining Walls on Staten Island: Codes and Costs
I’ve spent most of my working life as a mason around New Haven, Connecticut, but a retaining wall is a retaining wall no matter what…
Garden and Seat Walls: Small Masonry, Big Impact
There’s a brick seat wall around a patio in Tottenville, on Staten Island, that I still think about years after I first saw it. The…
Drainage Behind a Retaining Wall: Why It Matters
I got called to a house up in Westville, on one of those streets that climbs away from the New Haven flats, to look at…