A curb is a drainage structure that happens to look like an edge. Water on a Midland parking lot rarely arrives gently; a thunderstorm can drop a season of rain in an hour onto a surface that sheds it instantly. The gutter line has to be right, or the water finds another path, usually through a door.
Concrete Contractors of Midland forms and places curb and gutter for commercial developments, industrial yards, institutional campuses and public projects in Midland and the surrounding Permian Basin communities. We use machine placement on long runs and hand forming on tight radii, and we coordinate trade partners for grading and storm drainage.
Our schedule for curb work is built around the paving that follows. The curb must be set to grade, cured and backfilled before the parking lot slab or asphalt arrives, so we plan its placement against the paving date and the owner's opening date.
Buildings and sites that need curb
Retail centers, office buildings, hospitals and warehouses all rely on curb to define drives and direct runoff. Distribution and truck yards need heavier sections and deeper footings where loaded trucks ride the edge.
Curb also protects landscaping and sidewalks from vehicles. A well-placed curb prevents more property damage than almost any other small concrete item.
Heights and profiles vary by use. A standard vertical curb stops vehicles, a rolled curb lets them cross at drives, and a ribbon gutter handles water without a raised edge. We confirm which profile the drawings call for at each location and keep the forms for each profile labeled on site.
Work that connects to curb
Parking lot concrete meets the curb at the gutter line, and sidewalks and flatwork sit behind it. Storm inlets and trench drains must tie into the gutter at the right elevation.
Quoting these scopes together lets us confirm elevations across the site and avoid conflicts between the curb line and the drainage structures.
What moves a curb price
Length is the main driver, followed by the number of radii, the curb section and the access for placing equipment. Machine-placed straight runs are efficient. Short sections with many turns and drive cuts take more hand work, and a lot with tight islands and landscape pockets can take longer than a long straight street.
Subgrade conditions and reinforcing add cost. We separate those items so owners can compare options, and we note which allowances cover unknown base conditions.
Mobilization is a quiet cost. A site that needs the curb placed in three visits because of paving phases costs more than one that allows a continuous run, and we say so at bid time so the owner can combine phases when the schedule allows.
Where we place curb
Downtown Midland's assessed value is $67.3 million per acre, about triple any other part of the city, according to the consultant cited in the city's release. That concentration of value means public and private streetscape projects stay active, and curb, gutter and sidewalk work follows.
We also mobilize crews to commercial and industrial sites around the city and across surrounding Basin communities. Pinnacle Midstream's Dos Picos processing complex in Midland County planned a second 220 MMcf/d train, which would double the company's Midland Basin processing capacity to 440 MMcf/d, and sites like that need access roads, yards and curb that match the plans.
Grade, drainage and tie-ins
Curb is set to the grade the engineer shows, and that grade is checked with string lines or a laser before and after forming. We confirm the flow line toward inlets, the cross slope of the pavement and the depth of the gutter pan.
Where new curb meets existing pavement or a utility, we plan the transition carefully. A tie-in that is a half inch high can pond water. We walk the line with the owner's rep when the tie-in is critical.
Drive approaches deserve their own attention. Where a curb is dropped for a driveway, the slope from the street to the pad must work for cars, delivery trucks and wheelchairs at once, and we check that before the concrete goes in.
Sequence with grading and paving
Curb follows final subgrade and precedes paving. If the base is late, curb waits. If paving is early, curb must be done sooner. We keep a short calendar that shows both and update it when either changes.
Placement is often done in one or two days for a lot, and we try to place early in the day so the surface can be finished before heat arrives. The City of Midland broke ground on October 29, 2025 on a terminal expansion at the airport that adds four security checkpoint lanes, expandable to six, with completion expected in 2027, so airport-area access and truck routing can shift during construction.
Specifications and inspections
Curb sections, reinforcing, joint spacing and concrete strength come from the drawings. Public work may require inspection and testing at specific stages, and private projects often follow the city's standard details.
Public owners often name the standard details by number, and private owners may ask for a heavier section at truck entrances. We confirm the requirements before we bid, schedule inspections ahead of pours and keep test records. Where a curb crosses a public right of way, we also coordinate permits with the local permit office.
Owners who need curb
Commercial developers need curb for retail pads and office parks. Municipal and public works owners need it for street projects. Industrial and manufacturing owners need heavy sections along truck routes.
Each buyer wants a clean, straight edge and a drainage path that works. A curb that wanders or holds water shows up in every rain, so we take the straightness of the line as seriously as its elevation. We keep records of elevations and inspections so the owner has proof that the work meets the plan.
Get a curb quote with the paving
Send the site plan, the grading drawings and your paving date. We will return a scope, a pour calendar and a price. We can include concrete paving in the same proposal.
Common Questions
Do you use machine or hand forming?
Both. Machines are efficient on long straight runs, and hand forming handles radii, drive cuts and short sections. We choose the method that gives the best result for each part of the site.
How is curb elevation checked?
We use string lines or laser equipment against benchmarks before forming and again after placement. Any difference is corrected before the concrete sets.
What causes curb to crack?
Shrinkage, settling base and missing joints cause most cracks. We saw or tool joints at the planned spacing and compact the base before forming.
Can you replace damaged curb without redoing the whole lot?
Yes. We saw-cut the damaged section, remove it and place a new section with proper dowels to the adjacent curb. We also look at what caused the damage so it does not repeat.
How soon can paving follow the curb?
Usually once the curb has gained enough strength and been backfilled. We confirm timing with the paving contractor and the engineer to protect the new edge from equipment.