Site Preparation & Dirt Work
Building pads, grading, leveling, and drainage shaping — stable, well-drained ground ready for construction, agriculture, or recreation.
Learn More
Yard leveling starts with the low spots, where water stands after every hard rain. Tire ruts from a truck or trailer fill with water too. The puddle that matters most is the one right beside the house. Humps and dips also make every mowing a rough ride.
We level yards with a compact track loader and bucket, the same machine behind our skid steer services. We cut high spots down to fill low ones and shape the ground to fall away from the house. Extra topsoil or fill arrives on your supplier's truck, and we spread, shape and track-pack it. Yard leveling is the home-lot side of our site preparation and dirt work.
Rain shows every low spot in a yard. One national cost guide lists pooling water and spongy soil in low areas as signs a yard needs work. It also lists grass cut unevenly over peaks and dips in the lawn.
How long the water stays depends on the soil under the grass. Along Bayou Lafourche in Richland Parish, the ground is waxy clay. On the Mississippi River floodplain, Sharkey clay is poorly drained and takes in water very slowly. Up on the Macon Ridge, in the east half of the parish, yards sit mainly on silt loam.
Water beside the house is the spot to fix first. When a yard sits flat or tips toward the slab, rain runs to the house instead of away. Louisiana's residential code calls for at least 6 inches of fall in the first 10 feet from the foundation.
A compact track loader with a bucket does this work. We cut the humps down and carry that dirt into the dips. One cost guide calls this cut and fill: dirt comes off the high areas to build up the low ones. When the yard runs short of dirt, the topsoil or fill from your supplier makes up the rest.
Fill goes down in thin layers, and the tracks pack each layer before the next one. Next to the house, we shape the ground so it falls away from the foundation. Where a wall, a lot line or a slope blocks that fall, the code calls for drains or swales. Swales are part of our drainage and culvert installation work.
The finished yard is rough leveled and ready for seed or sod. One cost guide advises seeding or laying sod right after leveling, to hold the soil in place. Planting is yours or your landscaper's part of the job.
We level yards on home lots around Rayville, Monroe, West Monroe and Ruston. Each job starts with a free on-site estimate. We look at where the rain runs now and where it should go. Then we work out how much topsoil or fill to order, and you book the delivery with your supplier.
The loader comes in on a trailer, and it needs a gate or gap wide enough to reach the yard. Ask your supplier to drop the pile near the low spots, where the truck will not sink. Clear vehicles and yard furniture off the area before we arrive.
A few yard jobs outgrow a track loader. One cost guide notes that removing a steep hill requires heavy equipment. Some jobs need a dozer, excavator or roller crew, and we tell you when that is the case.
A yard that drains is usable sooner after rain, and the mower runs smooth across it. Water moves away from the slab instead of collecting beside it. One national cost guide says buyers with children typically prefer houses with level backyards.
Free, no-obligation site evaluations across Northeast Louisiana.
(318) 235-7597Mike owns and improves his own land — adding roads, ponds, food plots, and habitat. We treat your property the way we treat ours: practical, durable, and built to last.
Led by a nationally recognized land specialist with America’s Land Partners ($52.5M+ sold). Every improvement is made with usability, marketability, and long-term property value in mind.
Hands-on USDA and NRCS habitat experience — food plots, shooting lanes, and deer management designed around how game actually uses your land.
Part 107 certified aerial imagery, property mapping, and drone-based deer herd analysis — insight few land-improvement companies can offer.
Based in Northeast Louisiana and licensed across LA, AR & MS with America’s Land Partners — deep regional knowledge of the land, the soil, and the market.
Fully insured for your protection and peace of mind — your property, your project, and your investment are covered from the first pass to the final grade.
Mike Martien, a nationally recognized land specialist with America's Land Partners, looks at a yard the way a buyer would. So we level each yard around where its water goes, and the smooth finish comes second. The free on-site estimate settles the fall and how much topsoil or fill to order.
From the first call to the final pass, here’s exactly what working with us looks like.
Fill out our quick estimate form or give us a call. Tell us about your property and what you’re trying to accomplish.
We walk the ground with you, assess the conditions, and talk through the best plan for your land — clearing, improvements, habitat, and access.
You get a straightforward plan and a free, no-obligation estimate — viewed through the lens of usability, wildlife, and long-term value.
Our crew arrives ready to clear, shape, and improve your property with the care of a fellow landowner — and leave it ready for what’s next.
Common questions about yard leveling across Northeast Louisiana. Don’t see yours? Give us a call — we’re happy to help.
Yard Leveling is one of the specialty services inside Site Preparation & Dirt Work.
Building pads, grading, leveling, and drainage shaping — stable, well-drained ground ready for construction, agriculture, or recreation.
Learn More
New recreational, fishing, livestock, and ag ponds built — and existing ponds cleaned out and reshaped — sited and shaped to hold water and last.
Learn More
Driveway culverts, ditches, swales and drainage grading that get standing water off flat Delta ground so pads, roads, plots and pastures stay usable.
Learn More
House pads, shop pads and barn pads built up with delivered fill, crowned to drain, and ready for the slab.
Learn More
Rough and finish grading for home sites, barn sites, cleared lots and field edges, shaped with a compact track loader so rain runs off.
Learn More
Compact track loader work for a mixed job list: grapple cleanup, brush clearing, spreading delivered dirt and rock, and shaping lanes and pads.
Learn MoreReal words from clients who’ve trusted Mike with their land as a land specialist with America’s Land Partners — the same care and work ethic he brings to every Big Cypress project.
“Mike Martien secured my real estate sale through very difficult circumstances. He went above and beyond what would be expected of any agent. Anyone would be in the best of hands letting Mike work for you and with you.”
“We’ve known Mike for over 30 years. His work ethic and knowledge are exceptional. He’s passionate about helping others, trustworthy, and puts his client’s needs first. We highly recommend him to anyone working with land.”
“Mike has lifelong experience dealing with land management and development. His experience shows in researching current trends and values. For the most appropriate valuations and ease of sales, he can’t be beat.”
Ready to improve, enjoy, or get more value out of your land in Northeast Louisiana? Reach out for a free, no-obligation consultation — and put a fellow landowner’s experience to work on your property. Buying or selling? Mike wears that hat too, as a land specialist with America’s Land Partners.