Retaining Walls in Oakville, MO

Split-Levels Above the Rivers

Oakville fills the southeast corner of St. Louis County, with Mississippi River bluffs on the east and the Meramec along the south. It never incorporated, so St. Louis County handles permits directly. Most of it was built from the 1960s through the 80s: split-levels, raised ranches and walk-outs on streets that follow ridges and dip into small creek valleys running toward the two rivers.

That housing stock produces its own kinds of walls. Some hold the grade beside a walk-out basement, some hold a driveway dropping to a garage under the house, and many back yards were stepped down over the years. Many of those walls were timber, and many are now due.

Walls Next to the House

A wall beside a walk-out is the one to watch. It usually catches roof runoff and yard runoff together, and if it leans, the soil moves toward the foundation. The fix is almost always drainage first: downspouts carried past the wall in solid pipe and a drain behind it run to daylight. Then the wall gets reset or rebuilt. Tight ones against the house may need poured concrete.

Near the bluffs, loess on a steep face erodes fast once it's disturbed, and some slopes need an engineer before anyone builds on them.

Other Work Here

Old timber terraces get replaced with block. Wooded back slopes suit boulders, front walks can take stone, and every new wall on a sloped lot includes planned excavation and access.

Oakville Retaining Wall FAQs