General Pricing Help Needed

[JohnsLand]

I had posted a thread with questions regarding some grading I'm looking at having done, in the scraper section / sub forum, but figured a pricing question might get some more traction in the general forum. I'm completely new to grading/leveling/etc, and just trying to learn as much as I can about it now.

I was able to get some help and some questions answered in that thread, but...was hoping a couple folks could give me some feedback on what pricing might be for what I'm looking to get done.

Of course this is a very open ended question, but as I continue to do the due diligence on this project, I'm hoping to get some very rough figures on what I might be looking at price wise.

If anyone could help with maybe what the total cost might be ($50k, $100k, $500k, etc), or maybe how many hours and cost per hour I might expect, I would appreciate it. Located in IL, and just trying to get an idea of what it might cost.

The original thread is located here, and the explanation and topo maps are in the thread.

I really appreciate any help anyone could give.

https://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/threads/land-grading-leveling-help-needed.66977/#post-696978

 

[Tinkerer]

Have you dug any test holes to determine what soil types and moisture conditions you will be dealing with ? How are you planning on dealing with the topsoil ? I would think silt screen will need to be installed around the neighbors property to protect them from erosion. 3/1 slopes are a little difficult to mow. I wouldn't want to sit on mower on anything steeper than 4/1. Do you need to go through any permitting processes with governmental agencies ? That can be expensive and time consuming. Any contractor you get to come in and bid this project will be asking you these same questions and more.
I don't do pricing but have spent some time in the dirt moving business.

 

[JohnsLand]

Have you dug any test holes to determine what soil types and moisture conditions you will be dealing with ? How are you planning on dealing with the topsoil ? I would think silt screen will need to be installed around the neighbors property to protect them from erosion. 3/1 slopes are a little difficult to mow. I wouldn't want to sit on mower on anything steeper than 4/1. Do you need to go through any permitting processes with governmental agencies ? That can be expensive and time consuming. Any contractor you get to come in and bid this project will be asking you these same questions and more.
I don't do pricing but have spent some time in the dirt moving business.

Thanks for the reply Tinkerer.

I've spoken to the village and county many times as to what we want to do here, to ensure it is possible. The parcel next door was subdivided into roughly 16 commercial buildings, with a road put down the middle. Roughly 8 buildings on each side. Typical steel and masonry buildings, roughly 1,500 to 8,000 SF in size. With that said, the local municipalities have a decent idea about soil and water conditions. Since much of this was agricultural in the past, they also have some good soil maps on record at the county. And yes, we do have to go through rezoning, etc. The village is on board with everything we're looking to do here, and we have their timelines worked into our plan. And yes, you are correct, it does end up being time consuming from start to finish before you can even start building.

As for the soil, although all of the "engineers" and folks at the municipalities confirm we should be good to go...we wont know for sure until our surveyors go out there, and the data is given to our civil engineer. We have an ALTA survey, geotechnical survey (soils report), and TOPO survey lined up. That data is then given to our civil, and they will determine the final grading plan, water control, etc.

So we do have professionals lined up for this next stage of the project. But as part of my construction research and what all it takes to build/grade, I'm just trying to learn a little more and maybe get an idea of cost before we move forward, from an independent 3rd party (you folks vs. local contractors). This way I have sort of and idea of what I'm talking about and will be less likely to be taken advantage of. It would help at this point if someone could look at it and say that what we're looking to do is a pretty easy job, or that there is something that really stands out that might cost a ton of money and we're looking at a million bucks to move the dirt.

As for the topsoil, I've read its good to push it to the side and store it. With self storage, most of the space is paved, so not sure topsoil will be much of a concern for us. We intend to utilize the first 9 acres, leaving the back of the parcel undeveloped at this time, so we could push anything we needed to store back there, and I believe we'd be working with enough soil to cut/fill without needed to truck anything in. Any excess could also be stored on site.

 

[Tinkerer]

I think based on your last post that you have a very good understanding about your project. It would be ill-advised to take any kind of price for a job that size from someone on the internet. I know you are anxious to get a grasp on what it is going to cost, but about all you can is seek bids based on an engineers set of specs. and drawings.