Written and reviewed by the Kuesel field operations & estimating team
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Kuesel is a family-owned site work and utility contractor based in O'Fallon, MO, building sites across St. Louis since 1963.
Most site budgets that go wrong were wrong on the day the land went under contract. The surprises are rarely exotic: a rock ledge nobody probed, old fill from a previous use, a sewer that is farther away than the concept plan assumed, or a detention basin that eats a pad. This checklist is the list we walk through with developers before a budget is written. Use it during your feasibility period, hand it to your civil engineer, and check items off as the answers come in.
It is general guidance, not engineering. Your geotechnical engineer, civil engineer and the reviewing agencies set the actual requirements for your site.
1. Soils and geotechnical
The geotech report drives more of the site budget than any other document. If you don't have one yet, at least get preliminary borings across the building pads and paved areas.
- Boring locations cover the pads, paving and the deepest planned cuts
- Moisture contents and plasticity results reported for the clays
- Engineer's recommendations for subgrade preparation (undercut, stabilization, or both)
- Groundwater observations and seasonal notes
- Whether test pits are recommended to confirm conditions between borings
When the borings show soft or wet clay, lime and cement soil stabilization is often the alternative to undercut.
2. Rock
- Auger or boring refusal depths noted and mapped against proposed cuts
- Utility trench depths compared with refusal depths, not just pad grades
- A plan for how rock will be paid for in the contract (unit price or allowance)
3. Existing fill and prior use
- Evidence of previous structures, foundations, basements or buried debris
- Old fill identified in borings and whether it must be removed
- Abandoned utilities, tanks, or septic systems
- Environmental reports reviewed before any earthwork is priced
4. Earthwork balance: export and import
A site that balances on paper can still haul dirt off if the material in the cuts is unsuitable for the fills. See our cut and fill guide for how grading decisions change export.
- Preliminary cut/fill quantities from a surface model, not just spot grades
- Topsoil stripping depth assumed and where it will be stockpiled
- Whether cut material is usable as structural fill
- Where export can go and where import would come from
5. Stormwater and detention
Detention and water-quality requirements depend on which agency reviews your site. Our stormwater planning guide explains the general picture.
- Which agency reviews stormwater for this parcel
- Space reserved for detention, bioretention, or underground storage
- Outfall location and whether downstream improvements may be required
- Existing drainage that crosses the site from neighboring land
6. Utility availability and capacity
- Water main location, size and the provider's capacity confirmation
- Sanitary sewer location, depth, and whether gravity service is possible or a lift station is needed
- Off-site extensions required to reach service
- Electric, gas and telecom routes coordinated with site utilities
- Utility locates requested through 811 / Missouri One Call before any field investigation
Kuesel's site utility contractor crews install the water, sewer, storm and conduit that connect the site.
7. Easements and encumbrances
- Recorded utility, drainage and access easements plotted on the survey
- Pipelines or transmission lines with crossing or grading restrictions
- Rights others hold across the site that limit grading or phasing
8. Erosion control and land disturbance permitting
- Land disturbance permit path identified (state and local)
- Stormwater pollution prevention plan responsibility assigned
- Perimeter controls and construction entrance shown on the plans
- Final stabilization requirements understood before the schedule is set
Missouri DNR publishes its construction land disturbance permit information online. Local governments may have their own permits as well.
9. Access and haul routes
- Construction entrance location and sight distance
- Road restrictions or weight limits on haul routes
- Neighbors, schools or businesses that limit work hours or truck traffic
10. Demolition
- Structures, slabs and pavement to be removed
- Pre-demolition surveys completed where required
- Salvage or on-site crushing of concrete and asphalt considered
- Utility disconnects scheduled
If the site has buildings or pavement to remove, see our site demolition services.
11. Phasing
- Which pads or lots must be ready first
- Whether utilities and detention must be built before the first phase opens
- Stockpile and staging areas that won't block later phases
- Temporary access and drainage between phases
What to do with the answers
Send the survey or topo, the concept plan and whatever geotech you have to a site contractor while you are still in your feasibility period. That is the point of our Early Site Budget for developers: a preliminary sitework budget, a cut/fill read, and a list of risks to resolve before you close. We work across St. Charles County, St. Louis County and the Metro East, including O'Fallon, Wentzville and Edwardsville.
For the cost side of these same items, read what drives site development cost. More guides are in our resources library.
Questions
- When should a developer run through this checklist?
- During the feasibility or due-diligence period, before closing on the land and before the pro forma is finalized. Many of the answers need borings, a survey, and utility confirmations that take weeks to get.
- Do I need a geotech report before talking to a site contractor?
- No. A contractor can give a rough read from a survey and concept plan, but the budget gets much more reliable once borings are available. If you have preliminary borings, send them.
- Is this checklist a substitute for engineering?
- No. It is a list of questions. Your civil engineer, geotechnical engineer and the reviewing agencies decide the requirements for your site.
- Can Kuesel help answer these items?
- Yes. Through our Early Site Budget we review the survey, concept plan and geotech, walk the site, and return a preliminary budget with the risks we see.
This guide is general information from a site contractor, not engineering or legal advice. Your engineers and the reviewing agencies set the requirements for your project.