Hear from Our Customers
If you’ve got a slope that washes out every spring, a wall that’s started to lean, or a backyard you’ve never been able to actually use that’s not a landscaping inconvenience. That’s money walking off your property every time it rains. Marple’s rolling Piedmont terrain means most quarter-acre lots in Lawrence Park and Broomall aren’t flat. The creek valley drop-offs that defined this township before the split-levels went up in the 1950s are the same grade changes homeowners are still managing today except now the original drainage is 60 or 70 years old and failing.
A properly built retaining wall changes all of that. The slope that’s been eroding toward your foundation becomes a level patio. The unusable backyard hillside becomes tiered garden space. The drainage problem that’s been quietly getting worse becomes a system that actually moves water away from your house. Property appraisers estimate 100 to 200 percent ROI on well-designed retaining walls and in a market where Lawrence Park homes are valued above $545,000, that math is worth paying attention to.
What you’re really getting is stability. Structural, visual, and financial. A wall built right in Marple doesn’t need to be rebuilt in five years because someone skipped the drainage planning or used materials that can’t handle Delaware County freeze-thaw cycles. It just holds.
We’re based in Aston about ten miles from Broomall down Route 1 or the Blue Route. That’s not a detail we throw in to sound local. It means the same crew that designs your wall is the crew that builds it, and the same person who answers your call before the project answers it after. No subcontractors rotating in and out. No project manager you’ve never met making decisions on-site.
Renato Spennato holds an active Pennsylvania contractor license (PA057623) and carries a BuildZoom score of 102 placing us in the top 11 percent of over 125,000 licensed Pennsylvania contractors. That’s the kind of credential that matters when Marple Township’s Code Enforcement requires your contractor to be listed as the Certificate Holder on their insurance before pulling a single permit.
Homeowners in Foxcroft Estates, Lawrence Park, and throughout Marple Township have enough to manage without chasing down a contractor who goes quiet after the deposit clears. That’s not how we work.
It starts with a site visit. Not a phone estimate, not a ballpark based on photos an actual walkthrough of your property. Marple’s terrain varies more than people expect. The slope behind a split-level on Sproul Road behaves differently than a hillside lot near Paxon Hollow, and drainage patterns in the Crum Creek watershed don’t follow a formula. Before any numbers are discussed, we assess the site: grade, soil conditions, access, existing drainage, and what you actually want the space to do when the wall is done.
From there, drainage gets planned before materials do. This is where a lot of walls fail contractors choose the block, pour the footing, and treat drainage as an afterthought. Hydrostatic pressure from trapped water behind the wall is the number one reason retaining walls fail, and it’s entirely preventable when you plan for it upfront. We work with VERSA-LOK modular retaining wall systems, which don’t require frost footings a meaningful advantage in a climate that cycles through freeze and thaw every winter.
Once the design and drainage plan are set, the build follows a documented process: stepped layering, compacted backfill, and proper base preparation from the start. Marple Township requires permits for retaining wall construction under Chapter 108 of the municipal code, and any project involving grading triggers additional review under Chapter 159. We handle that permitting process as part of the job not left for you to figure out.
Ready to get started?
Retaining wall work in Marple Township isn’t one-size-fits-all. The township’s Steep Slope Ordinance under section 300-62 regulates any disturbance on slopes greater than 15 percent which covers a significant portion of the lots in this township given the Piedmont topography and creek valley grade changes. The Stormwater Management Ordinance, updated as recently as September 2024, adds another layer. A contractor who doesn’t know these requirements going in creates compliance problems that fall on you at resale.
Every retaining wall project with us includes a full on-site assessment, drainage system planning, material selection matched to Pennsylvania’s freeze-thaw climate, and permit handling through Marple Township’s Code Enforcement Department. For walls requiring added height or structural reinforcement, we offer VERSA-LOK systems with geogrid reinforcement capable of scaling from a garden border to a full hillside retention system without the frost footing requirement that causes problems in Delaware County winters.
Materials are selected for longevity, not just appearance. Concrete block walls are built to last 30 to 50 years. Natural stone installations, when the site calls for it, can last a century with proper drainage behind them. For homes in the $350,000 to $575,000-plus range that define Marple’s housing market, the material you choose today determines whether this is a one-time investment or a recurring expense.
Yes and this is one of the most common points of confusion homeowners run into. Pennsylvania’s statewide baseline exempts retaining walls under four feet from building permits, but Marple Township layers its own requirements on top of that. Under Chapter 108 of Marple’s Uniform Construction Code, retaining walls are explicitly listed as a permit-required construction activity regardless of height. Any project that involves grading or regrading also triggers review under Chapter 159, the Grading, Drainage and Erosion Control Ordinance. If your lot has slopes greater than 15 percent which is common in Marple given the township’s Piedmont terrain and creek valley grade changes the Steep Slope Ordinance under section 300-62 adds another layer of review.
A contractor who tells you that you don’t need a permit for a short wall in Marple is giving you incorrect information. Beyond the compliance issue, unpermitted work creates real problems at resale. Marple Township’s Code Enforcement also requires that all contractors list the township as the Certificate Holder on their Certificate of Insurance before pulling any permit meaning an unlicensed or uninsured contractor can’t legally do permitted work here at all. We handle the permitting process as part of every project.
Most residential retaining wall projects in the Marple and Broomall area fall somewhere between $3,500 and $10,000, with pricing ranging from roughly $40 to $345 per linear foot depending on height, materials, site conditions, and drainage requirements. That’s a wide range, and the reason it’s wide is that no two lots in Marple are identical. A modest concrete block wall on a relatively flat lot near Lawrence Park Shopping Center is a different job than a tiered stone system on a hillside lot near Paxon Hollow Country Club.
The factors that push cost higher are usually height, drainage complexity, and site access. Walls that require geogrid reinforcement for added structural depth, or sites where the existing grade creates difficult access for equipment, take more time and material. The factors that keep cost reasonable are good planning upfront knowing what the drainage needs to do before the first block goes in prevents expensive corrections later. The best way to get an accurate number for your specific property is an on-site assessment, which is how every project with us starts.
The biggest climate factor in Delaware County and specifically in Marple Township is freeze-thaw cycling. Marple straddles two climate zones, with January averages near 32 degrees Fahrenheit and annual minimums that can dip below two degrees. Every winter, water infiltrates the soil behind a wall, freezes and expands, then thaws and contracts. For walls built without freeze-thaw-resistant materials or adequate drainage, that cycle does structural damage year after year until the wall fails.
Concrete block is the most common choice for Marple residential projects it handles freeze-thaw well, lasts 30 to 50 years with proper installation, and works for a wide range of wall heights and configurations. Natural stone is an excellent option where the budget and aesthetic call for it, and a properly built stone wall with good drainage can last a century. We also work with VERSA-LOK modular systems, which have the added advantage of not requiring frost footings removing one of the most common failure points in Pennsylvania’s climate. Treated timber is the least expensive option but has the shortest lifespan, typically 10 to 30 years, and is generally not recommended for primary retention in this climate.
It depends on what’s causing the lean, and that requires a site assessment to answer accurately. In most cases, a leaning retaining wall in Marple is a drainage problem before it’s a structural problem. Water has built up behind the wall either because drainage wasn’t installed originally, or because it’s become blocked over time and the hydrostatic pressure has pushed the wall forward. If the wall itself is still structurally sound and the lean is caught early, it’s sometimes possible to address the drainage issue and reset the wall. But if the foundation has shifted significantly or the blocks have cracked, full replacement is usually the more cost-effective path.
For homes in Lawrence Park and Broomall Park where original walls were built in the 1950s and 1960s, there’s often no drainage system behind the wall at all it simply wasn’t standard practice at the time. A repair that doesn’t address the underlying drainage issue will fail again, often faster than the original. The honest answer is that a leaning wall needs eyes on it before anyone can tell you what the right fix is.
For a standard residential retaining wall in Marple, most installations run between two and five days once the project is underway. The timeline varies based on wall length and height, site access, drainage complexity, and weather. What extends the overall project timeline more than the installation itself is the permitting process. Marple Township requires permits for retaining wall construction, and permit review timelines through the Code Enforcement Department can add days to weeks to the front end of a project depending on the current volume of applications and whether the project triggers additional review under the Steep Slope or Stormwater Management ordinances.
The practical advice here is to start the process earlier than you think you need to. Demand for retaining wall installation in Delaware County peaks in spring and early summer the same window when homeowners are seeing post-winter damage and want work done before the growing season. Planning in late winter gives you the best chance of getting on the schedule before the backlog builds and gives the permitting process enough runway to clear before the crew shows up.
Yes, and the numbers are meaningful in a market like Marple. Property appraisers generally estimate 100 to 200 percent ROI on well-designed retaining walls meaning a $7,000 wall could add $14,000 or more in appraised value. That figure is more relevant in Marple than in many surrounding townships because of what the housing stock looks like here. Homes in Lawrence Park are selling above $545,000. Buyers in this market are discerning, and a sloped, eroded, or unusable backyard is a visible detractor during a showing. A finished, level outdoor space with a well-built wall reads as a completed improvement not a project the next owner has to deal with.
There’s also a compliance angle that directly affects value. Unpermitted retaining wall work can surface during a home inspection or title search and create complications at closing. A wall built with proper permits through Marple Township’s Code Enforcement is documented, legal, and transferable which protects the investment you made and doesn’t hand the next buyer a problem.
Local Resources
Useful Links
