
The Eden Group has over 40 years of experience providing civil engineering services to residential and commercial projects across Southern California. Our team has successfully prepared and permitted over 2,000 projects involving different types of civil engineering plans such as grading, drainage, stormwater management, street improvements, utilities, and erosion control. We have the knowledge and professional expertise in understanding the various complex requirements issued by your local governing agency and the staff to assist your development team in achieving project goals.
Almost every proposed project which involves structures requires the preparation of a grading plan that adheres to the building code and local ordinances. A grading plan includes proposed elevations and cut/fill calculations that addresses drainage concurrently. Grading is the movement of gravel, sand, sediments, and other materials in order to alter the natural contour of the land. Local ordinances have become more strict over the years by imposing limits pertaining to the amount of dirt you can export from the project site and the total amount of excavation. This is why it is very important that you work with a team that has experience with your project’s local agency and relations with agency personnel to ease the process until permit issuance. At the early stages of design, we work directly with your architect to make sure that all elements of the design are addressed in conjunction and coordination with local civil engineering requirements in order to reduce the amount of future delays.
95% of issues pertaining to the structural integrity of a building are caused by inadequate drainage design, stormwater management, no proper maintenance strategy, and settlement. Drainage design uses methods for the collection of water, treatment, and eventually discharge. Our hydrology team assesses project specific details in order to calculate the total volume of water received in a rainy event. The volume of water is used to size drainage components such as stormwater water planters, drywells, catch basins, culverts, pipes, curb drains, trench drains, channel drains including downspouts, and area drains.
A grading plan is a drawing that addresses the redistribution of dirt, gravel, and other material on a site altering the natural contour of the land in order to meet project specific goals and adhere to building code requirements.
An LID plan is drawing that addresses the treatment of stormwater through various Best Management Practices (BMP) methods in order to reduce the amount of pollutants in the water which eventually end up in our waterways and to replenish groundwater aquifers.
Erosion control plans are prepared by a licensed civil engineer to specify and design measures to control construction debri run-off during the rainy season. As you know, dirt and materials are scattered throughout the project during the construction phase and upon contact with water they begin to move within the project and beyond.
You can search the engineers name and licensure status by visiting the following link: https://search.dca.ca.gov/
We always recommend asking for a copy of prior approved plans and/or permits related to your scope of work. If they cannot provide proof, then we suggest hiring a different firm because we have noticed that many companies online claim to have done thousands of projects contradictory to building records.
There should be no reason that a company does not allow you to speak directly with your engineer. This is usually a red flag because many companies online are more of a marketing agency than an engineering firm. Your hard-earned money should go towards engineering services prepared directly under the supervision of a licensed engineer and not farmed to consultants in different parts of the world. Having direct contact with your engineer is extremely important because civil engineering is very complex and poses various risks associated with inadequate design practices. Our clients are always welcome to come into our office and discuss their needs in person!
A GPI is a field inspection required for all proposed projects located within a designated “Hillside Grading Area“. This is the first step where grading division staff visit the site in order to generate a report of grading requirements based on existing conditions.
Please access our dedicated municipality pages which include a knowledge center with a lot of helpful information by clicking this link.
OUR PHONE CONSULTATIONS ARE ALWAYS FREE. SPEAK TO AN ENGINEER.