Outdoor projects in Town & Country often involve more than one feature. Grade changes, aging retaining walls, decks, steps, drainage, and backyard access all influence the final plan, and our crew brings 25+ years of hands-on experience coordinating those elements into one cohesive project.
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Replacing an aging retaining wall can solve the immediate structural problem, but the surrounding yard still needs to function once the work is finished. Backed by our 3-year workmanship warranty, this Town & Country backyard project became an opportunity to coordinate the wall with the outdoor living area and the connection between the home and yard. That meant thinking about the retaining structure, deck, staircase, grade, and access as parts of the same space rather than separate improvements.
Working with retaining walls and changing grades has shown us that the visible slope is only part of what needs to be considered. On established residential properties, yard access, drainage, existing structures, the surrounding grade, and how the homeowner wants to use the space can all influence how the project should be planned.
Older railroad-tie and timber walls can deteriorate over time, especially where the wall remains in constant contact with soil and moisture. When replacement becomes necessary, the project is an opportunity to evaluate the grade and drainage behind the wall instead of simply swapping one visible material for another.
Where a deck, patio, staircase, or lawn meets a change in elevation, those elements need to work together. The retaining wall should support the grade without making the rest of the backyard harder to access or use.
Steps and transitions matter just as much as the larger structures around them. A finished wall or deck should make movement through the property easier, not create awkward elevation changes that have to be corrected later.
Town & Country’s current building guidance includes specific greenspace requirements, with minimum permeable-surface percentages based on lot size. That means new hardscape, patios, decks, and other property improvements may need to be considered within the larger site plan—not only as standalone features.
Our retaining-wall experience includes aging wall replacements, tiered slopes, walls beside decks and patios, integrated steps, drainage conditions, and grade transitions across St. Louis and surrounding communities.
Before focusing on the finished block, we look at:
Water problems around a slope are not always solved at the retaining wall itself. Runoff may be coming from downspouts, higher areas of the yard, neighboring grades, patios, or other surfaces, so the drainage path across the property needs to be understood before the wall is built.
Excel Landscaping installs French drains, catch basins, drain boxes, buried downspout systems, underground piping, and grading corrections throughout St. Louis and surrounding communities. That drainage experience gives our crews a broader understanding of how water reaches a retaining wall and where it needs to go afterward.
When a retaining wall and drainage improvements are part of the same project, we plan them together, accounting for grade, runoff, collection points, and the surrounding landscape or hardscape before the finished installation goes in.
Town & Country sits within a strong central-west St. Louis County cluster, with communities such as Chesterfield, Creve Coeur, Ladue, and Des Peres nearby.
The projects below show different ways our crews have approached slopes, landscaping, drainage, patios, and other outdoor improvements across that surrounding area.
Yes. Our project portfolio includes work throughout nearby communities such as Chesterfield, Ladue, Des Peres, Ballwin, and other areas across St. Louis County.
Yes. Drainage is a critical part of most retaining-wall systems because water trapped behind the wall increases pressure on the structure and can contribute to movement, settlement, erosion, and premature failure. At Excel Landscaping, we don’t look at the wall separately from the property. We consider the slope, runoff, soil conditions, and where water needs to discharge before deciding how the drainage should be handled.
Replacement becomes more practical when the timbers are deteriorating throughout the wall, sections are leaning or separating, or the wall no longer provides reliable grade support. The condition of the base, drainage, and soil behind the wall should also be considered before deciding between repair and replacement.
