Commercial Site Prep in Louisville Metro: Pad-Ready Services for GCs & Developers
If you're a GC or developer working on a small commercial pad, light industrial building, multi-family site, or a pad-ready land deal anywhere in Louisville Metro, the site-prep contractor either makes or breaks your schedule. Here's how we scope and run commercial site prep in Jefferson, Bullitt, Nelson, and Hardin counties.
Scope of a typical commercial site-prep package
Pre-construction: survey verification, utility locate (811), tree-save plan, silt fence and construction-entrance install Clearing & grubbing: mechanical clearing, stump grinding below grade, brush haul-off or on-site grinding Mass excavation & cut/fill: balanced earthwork to engineered subgrade, density tested per spec Building pad: compacted to 95–98% Standard Proctor, within 0.1 ft of plan Parking lot subgrade: proof-rolled, undercut and re-compact where soft Storm rough-in: detention basin shaping, swales, riser stub-outs Utility trenches: sanitary, water, gas, electric, communications — coordinated with utility schedules Final grade & erosion control hand-off to paving and landscape crews
Louisville Metro-specific compliance
MSD stormwater: any disturbance over 1 acre triggers an MSD permit. SWPPP must be on-site, signed, and updated weekly. Develop Louisville LDC compliance: tree canopy, setbacks, ROW improvements KYTC entrance permits: for any project tying into a state route (KY-22, KY-44, KY-61, US-31E, US-31W, etc.) Air Pollution Control (APCD): dust control plan required on most commercial sites We pull, post, and close out all of the above in our own name when we're contracted as the sitework lead.
Schedule expectations
For a typical 2–5 acre commercial pad in Louisville Metro: Mobilization & E&S install: 1 week Clearing & grubbing: 1–2 weeks Mass earthwork & rough grading: 3–6 weeks Utility rough-in coordination: 2–4 weeks (concurrent) Pad finalization & hand-off to building: 1 week Expect 8–14 weeks total from NTP to pad-ready on a clean 3-acre commercial site. Karst conditions, undocumented fill from previous use, or wet weather can extend the schedule.
What we hand the building contractor
A pad that's: Within 0.1 ft of plan elevation across the footprint Compacted to spec with density reports for the file Stub-outs surveyed and staked Drainage actively functional during construction Construction entrance maintained, silt fence inspected weekly
Bid us on your next commercial pad
We're a Louisville-based, owner-operated sitework crew with our own equipment and 15+ years on Kentucky commercial projects. Send us the civil set and a schedule and we'll return a hard-number bid with a Gantt-style schedule attached. Contact us — Eric and Jerry handle commercial bids personally.
Topics
- commercial
- site-prep
- louisville
- developers
- general-contractor
Frequently Asked Questions
What does commercial site prep cost in Louisville Metro?
Commercial site prep typically runs $25,000–$150,000+ per acre depending on cut/fill volume, MSD detention requirements, paving subgrade spec, and utility scope. Small commercial pads (1/2 acre, paved access) usually land $25,000–$60,000 to pad-ready. Every bid is itemized line by line off the civil set.
What permits does a commercial site prep job need in Louisville?
Most commercial pads need an MSD stormwater permit (anything over 1 acre disturbed), a Develop Louisville LDC site plan, a KYTC entrance permit if you're tying into a state route, and an APDC dust-control plan. We handle MSD coordination and the entrance permit; the GC or civil engineer usually owns the LDC plan.
How long does commercial site prep take?
A typical 1–2 acre commercial pad runs 3–6 weeks from mobilization to pad-ready, depending on cut/fill volume and weather. MSD plan review can add 4–8 weeks before any dirt moves. We build a Gantt-style schedule into every commercial bid so the GC sees the critical path up front.
Do you bid as a sitework sub for general contractors?
Yes. We sub to GCs and developers across Louisville Metro on commercial pads, retail outlots, light industrial, and small office projects. Send us the civil set, the geotech report, and the schedule. Eric and Jerry handle commercial bids personally and we return hard numbers within a week.
What size commercial projects do you take on?
Pads up to about 5 acres are our sweet spot — outlots, restaurants, small retail, light industrial flex, self-storage, and church or school additions. Larger sites we'll quote case by case. We're not the right fit for highway-scale earthwork, and we'll tell you that up front.