Tempe walkways are usually short runs with a lot riding on them. Near ASU, in Maple-Ash, it's a front walk from the sidewalk to a porch on a 1920s to 1950s home. In postwar neighborhoods, it's replacing a cracked concrete walk or adding a side-yard path to the back. In flood-irrigated yards, the walk has to stay above the water. Every one gets a compacted base and clean edges.
What a Tempe paver walkway runs
Most paver walkways we install in Tempe cost $850 to $2,750 in concrete pavers for about 100 to 250 square feet. In natural stone or travertine, the same walk runs $1,500 to $4,500, and in porcelain $1,900 to $5,500. The minimum job is $800.
Length and material decide most of it. A short front walk on a postwar ranch house is near the low end, and a front walk plus a full side-yard path climbs toward the top.
Worked example: a 200 square foot walkway on a postwar Tempe home, with a front walk plus a side-yard path to the back gate, comes to about $1,700 to $2,200 in concrete pavers. We confirm the figure after measuring. The pricing guide lists every material.
Front walks near ASU
The Park Tract in Maple-Ash, just west of campus, was platted in 1924, and homes in the area run from period revival houses to early ranch homes. A front walk on one of these should look like it belongs: a simple pattern, a warm color, and edges that line up with the porch steps and the front of the house. If you want a traditional look, this homeowner's choice of clay brick over concrete is worth a read.
On older lots, the front walk often meets the porch at a step. That step should match the rise of any other steps on the property and have a clean, finished edge, so nobody catches a toe on it.
Side-yard paths on older lots
A lot of Tempe walkway work is the side yard: a path from the driveway to the backyard gate, past the AC unit and the trash cans. Side yards on older lots can be narrow, so the walk often runs from the house wall to the property wall. That means it has to pitch along its length, away from the foundation, and carry water out to the front or back instead of letting it pool against the house. How we plan steps, elevations and drainage covers grades like that.
Walkways in flood-irrigated yards
Tempe's city flood irrigation runs weekly, except in November and December. A walk across an irrigated lawn has to sit above the flood level, with edge restraint holding the pavers where the grass meets them and the berm kept intact. If the walk sits too low, water crosses it every week and works into the base until the pavers start to rock. We set the height and the berm together before we dig.
Under a Tempe walk, the build goes compacted base, then bedding sand screeded flat, then pavers held tight by edge restraint, then joint sand worked into the gaps and a final compaction. The yard's caliche won't take water, so the surface pitch carries it off.
Paver Walkways in Tempe: Frequently Asked Questions
Roughly what does a Tempe paver walkway run?
Most run $850 to $2,750 in concrete pavers for about 100 to 250 square feet. Natural stone or travertine runs $1,500 to $4,500, and porcelain $1,900 to $5,500. The minimum job is $800.
Can you fit a walkway in a narrow Tempe side yard?
Yes. We pitch the walk along its length so water moves out to the front or back and away from the foundation, instead of pooling against the house.
What kind of walk fits an older home near ASU?
A simple pattern like running bond or herringbone in a warm color usually fits a 1920s to 1950s house best. Samples come with us, so you can judge them against your porch and siding.
My front yard floods on irrigation day. Will a paver walkway hold up?
Yes, if it's set above the flood level with the berm intact. We plan the walk height and the berm together.
Do you replace old concrete walkways in Tempe?
Yes. We break up the old walk and haul it off, regrade, build a compacted base and set the pavers. Plenty of owners pair it with a new driveway so the colors match.