North Hollywood: pavers laid by hand

Everything that matters is underneath

Everything that decides whether a paver driveway is still flat in ten years happens before the first paver is visible: excavation depth, base material, compaction in lifts, and a screed set to laser lines rather than eyeballed.

The footage shows the unglamorous middle of that process — pallets staged for the run, base screeded flat, and the crew working row by row off a string. Done this way, a paver surface can be lifted and reset invisibly if anything ever needs to change underneath.

Driveways take more abuse than any other hardscape on a residential property. They are the surface where cutting corners on base preparation shows up first.

The driveway build

• Driveway and courtyard pavers
• Concrete work
• Excavation and compacted base preparation
• Laser-set screed lines
• Edge restraint and cut detailing