Curved Block Retaining Wall & Stepsin Seattle, WA

A sloped corner lot, held by a curved block retaining wall

This Seattle corner lot sat on a raised grass mound with a large mature cedar in the middle, and the soil kept sliding toward the street and the sidewalk. The goal was a strong concrete block retaining wall that would hold the slope, protect the tree and turn the raised yard into flat, usable space.

We laid out the wall with string lines, excavated the trench and compacted a gravel base, then set and leveled the first course of blocks. Behind the wall we installed perforated drain pipe in clean drain rock so water drains away instead of building up pressure, and we backfilled and compacted in lifts as the wall went up.

The wall follows the shape of the lot with smooth curved corners around the cedar and curved returns at each end, and we built a full set of concrete block steps into the wall for direct access to the upper yard. The split-face gray blocks were finished with a clean top course, then the base was dressed with mulch and gravel.

To close out the project, a cedar privacy fence was installed on top of the wall. Completed in Seattle, WA, this project adds to Acosta Landstone's portfolio in King County. We build retaining walls, hardscape & landscape designs and fences across the Eastside, Snohomish, King and Pierce Counties.

See more retaining wall work: Concrete Block Retaining Wall Installation in Seattle, Retaining Wall with Wood & Wire Fence in Sammamish and Full Exterior Hardscape Transformation in Bothell, or browse all projects.