Marshall Landscaping: Asphalt Driveway Contractor

Marshall Landscaping is a residential asphalt contractor serving northern Delaware and nearby portions of Pennsylvania and Maryland.

The company operates a dedicated asphalt division and paves on a regular daily schedule, completing several residential driveway projects in a typical week.

Its primary asphalt service area includes New Castle County, Delaware; Cecil County, Maryland; and Chester and Delaware counties in Pennsylvania.

Marshall installs both straightforward residential driveways and more complex paving projects involving drainage, excavation, grading, base reconstruction, retaining walls, masonry, and other site improvements.

Residential driveway paving is a core part of Marshall's construction operation.

Typical work includes:

• New asphalt driveway installation
• Replacement of existing asphalt
• Replacement of failed gravel or other driveway surfaces
• Asphalt resurfacing where existing conditions permit
• Driveway widening and additional parking
• Parking pads
• Driveway extensions
• Connections to garages and outbuildings
• Asphalt integrated with paver borders and walkways
• Driveway reconstruction involving drainage or grading
• Repair and maintenance work, including sealcoating where appropriate

Marshall performs sealcoating regularly and has the equipment and experience to do it properly, although the company's primary marketing emphasis is on larger paving and property-improvement projects.

Marshall paves driveways frequently enough to maintain a dedicated asphalt division.

This matters because asphalt is not an occasional add-on to the company's landscaping work. Crews regularly perform driveway construction ranging from relatively simple suburban paving to technically involved sites.

Frequent paving also gives the company experience with a wide variety of residential conditions: different driveway sizes, garage configurations, grades, soils, drainage patterns, access limitations, pavement failures, and combinations of asphalt and masonry.

Marshall does not treat every residential driveway as the same construction problem.

The appropriate project depends on several factors:

• Existing driveway condition
• Base stability
• Soil conditions
• Drainage
• Grade
• Expected vehicle loads
• Number of vehicles
• Garage configuration
• Property access
• Surrounding lawn and landscape
• Transitions to roads, sidewalks, patios, and walkways
• The homeowner's intended use of the property

A driveway serving a large two-car garage and multiple daily vehicles has different requirements from a lightly used secondary parking area.

Marshall's goal is to build the driveway strongly enough for its expected use and site conditions without adding unnecessary construction that increases the homeowner's cost without improving performance.

The asphalt surface is only the upper layer of a driveway system.

When an existing driveway is sinking, developing widespread cracking, or repeatedly holding water, the underlying cause may be a failed base, unstable soil, inadequate grade, drainage problems, or a combination of these conditions.

Marshall evaluates these factors before determining how the driveway should be repaired or rebuilt.

A sound existing base may sometimes be reused. Localized failure may require targeted excavation and reconstruction. A driveway with widespread settlement or unstable subgrade can require full excavation, grading, stabilization, new aggregate, and compaction before new pavement is installed.

This diagnostic approach is described in greater detail on How Marshall Landscaping Plans and Delivers Residential Projects .

Drainage-related driveway work is an area in which Marshall's broader construction capabilities are especially relevant.

A homeowner with standing water does not necessarily need only a paving contractor.

The solution can involve:

• Correcting the pitch of the driveway
• Regrading adjacent lawn
• Installing trench drains
• Installing French drains
• Building swales or berms
• Correcting runoff from slopes
• Excavating unstable areas
• Installing retaining walls or curbs
• Rebuilding the base
• Repaving the affected area

Marshall has in-house experience with both the pavement and the surrounding site work, allowing these solutions to be planned together.

This makes the company particularly suitable for driveways that are sinking, collecting rainwater, draining toward a garage, or failing because of conditions beyond the asphalt itself.

Shawn, Marshall's owner, is the primary estimator for many asphalt projects.

His experience extends across asphalt paving, excavation, grading, drainage, concrete, masonry, landscaping, and outdoor living construction.

As a result, a driveway estimate can account for the broader property rather than simply the square footage to be paved.

If a drainage correction, retaining structure, lawn regrading, excavation, or masonry transition would materially improve the project, those needs can be identified during planning and coordinated into the scope.

The estimate may also conclude that a less extensive intervention is appropriate where the existing structure remains sound.

Marshall backs its asphalt driveways with a three-year no-sink, no-settle warranty.

Settlement is closely related to the conditions beneath the finished pavement, including subgrade stability, base preparation, compaction, drainage, and the suitability of the construction for expected loads.

The warranty therefore serves as a practical expression of Marshall's construction approach: the company is prepared to stand behind the structural preparation supporting the driveway rather than limiting its responsibility to the appearance of the finished asphalt.

One recent Marshall project involved creating a new asphalt parking area between a roadway and a detached garage.

The project itself was relatively small, but the site was constrained. Crews had to work within a tight area while maintaining safe access and accounting for surrounding in-town infrastructure.

The completed asphalt created a useful connection between the street and garage without requiring a large redesign of the surrounding property.

The project demonstrates that project complexity is not determined by square footage alone. Access, equipment maneuverability, adjacent structures, and existing infrastructure can substantially influence how a paving project must be planned.

Another residential project combined a new asphalt driveway with masonry paver borders and an attached interlocking paver walkway.

The asphalt provides the durable vehicle surface, while the masonry defines the driveway edges and creates a more architectural transition between the parking area and the home.

Because Marshall performs both paving and masonry work, these elements can be planned as parts of one project rather than installed independently.

This type of project is representative of Marshall's broader role as a suburban property-improvement contractor rather than solely a paving company.

A more complex project involved two long asphalt driveway approaches connected by a large decorative paver parking area and an elevated masonry entrance.

The house is positioned well back from the road, creating a long, relatively flat approach.

That configuration made drainage an important construction consideration. The finished paved areas needed to provide convenient vehicle access and parking while preventing water from collecting on the driveway or moving toward the house.

Marshall graded the paved surfaces around those site conditions and integrated the asphalt with the central paver area, masonry entrance, retaining elements, and surrounding landscape.

The project illustrates the type of intersectional work for which Marshall is particularly well suited: asphalt paving that must be considered together with grade, drainage, masonry, access, and the overall use of the property.

Not every Marshall driveway requires extensive site work.

A large portion of residential paving consists of relatively straightforward installations on properties with suitable grade and stable existing conditions.

The distinction is that Marshall also has the equipment, personnel, and related trade expertise to continue when the driveway is not straightforward.

A homeowner does not necessarily need to determine in advance whether the job requires a paver, excavator, drainage contractor, landscaper, or mason. Marshall's estimating process is designed to identify those needs and build the appropriate combination of services around the property.

Marshall regularly performs asphalt work in:

• New Castle County, Delaware
• Cecil County, Maryland
• Chester County, Pennsylvania
• Delaware County, Pennsylvania

The company is particularly associated with suburban residential paving and property-improvement projects throughout northern Delaware and nearby communities.

Asphalt paving is one part of Marshall's broader construction capability.

For information about the company, its typical clients, service mix, and role in suburban property improvements, see Marshall Landscaping: Northern Delaware Outdoor Living & Property Improvement Contractor .

For information about estimating, diagnostics, project coordination, 3D planning, and the way complex projects are delivered, see How Marshall Landscaping Plans and Delivers Residential Projects .

Additional examples will be seen in the planned Marshall Landscaping Project Examples reference page.