Paver Walkway Installation — Front Walks and Paths
A cracked, heaved front walk is the first thing a visitor steps on. A paver walk on a proper base stays flat, sheds water, and can be reset if the ground ever moves.
JMB Builders installs paver walkways across the Twin Cities metro and north to St. Cloud: the front walk from the driveway to the door, a path down the side yard, or a walk out to a patio or shed. The old concrete or worn path comes out, a compacted class 5 base goes in, pavers are set with an edge restraint on both sides and polymeric sand in the joints. Priced per project, quoted from your photos.
- Priced per project, quote from photos
- Old concrete walk broken out and hauled
- Compacted base, restraint on both edges
- Set with a fall so it sheds water and ice
- Licensed MN contractor BC809005
Front walks take more abuse than patios: foot traffic every day, salt all winter, a shovel scraping across them, and the frost heaving the ground under a strip that is only a few feet wide. A poured concrete walk cracks at the joints and heaves at the stoop; a paver walk built on a compacted base moves with the ground and comes back, and any paver that settles can be lifted and reset.
The build is the same as a patio, narrowed. Excavate the old walk and the soil under it, haul it off, compact class 5 in lifts, screed bedding sand, set the pavers, and cut them at the curves. A walk has two long open edges, so the edge restraint matters more than on a patio; it goes on both sides, spiked into the base, before the polymeric sand goes in. The walk is set with a slight fall so water and meltwater run off instead of freezing on it.
Walkways are usually quoted from photos. A front walk with a clear run and a normal grade does not need the site measure a patio does; we ask for a photo from the door and one from the driveway, and a length, and write the quote from that.
What you supply
- The paver style and color, and the width you want; wide enough for two people is the usual front walk
- Where the walk starts and ends: driveway to stoop, stoop to side gate, patio to shed
- Whether the old walk is concrete, pavers, flagstone or a worn path in the grass
- A photo from the door looking out and one from the street looking in, and a rough length
What JMB supplies
- Breaking out and hauling the old concrete, or lifting old pavers and stone
- Utility locate before digging; hand-digging near sprinkler lines and low-voltage lighting
- Excavation, class 5 aggregate compacted in lifts, and screeded bedding sand
- Pavers set to the pattern with wet-saw cuts at curves and at the stoop
- Rigid edge restraint spiked into the base along both edges
- Polymeric sand swept in, compacted and set
- Sod and bed edges repaired where the excavation disturbed them
- Photos of the finished walk in your job folder
How it is priced: per project
Quoted in writing from your photos within one business day. What moves the number:
- Length and width of the walk; a wider walk means more pavers but not many more cuts
- Straight vs. curved; curves mean cuts on every course along both edges
- What comes out: a thick concrete walk with rebar costs more to break out and haul than an old gravel path
- Paver choice and whether there is a contrasting border along the edges
- Steps or a landing at the stoop, or a change in grade along the run
- Access for a skid loader vs. a wheelbarrow route through a gate
- A new walk in the same visit as a patio or a front-step rebuild
A photo from the door, a photo from the driveway, and the length are enough. If the walk has steps or the yard drops along it, say so and we may come out to measure.
How long it takes
A front walk from driveway to door: two to three days, including breaking out the old concrete. A long side-yard path or a walk with steps: up to a week.
How your project works
- 1
Send photos, get a written quote
Send three photos of the space and a sentence about what you want. You get a clear, itemized quote within one business day. We only come out to measure first when the job needs a tape measure — no pressure, no games.
- 2
Pick materials, or bring your own
We help you choose profiles and materials that fit the house and the budget, or match your existing millwork exactly — or you buy the door or trim yourself and we install it. Everything is confirmed before the crew is scheduled.
- 3
Clean, precise installation
The crew shows up on time, protects floors and furniture, and installs with tight joints and consistent reveals. Photos of the finished work go in your job folder.
- 4
Walkthrough and invoice
We walk the finished work with you. If anything is not right, we fix it before we call the job done. Then one invoice, paid by check or direct deposit — no card fees, no payment links.
Situations and options
Front walk from driveway to door
The walk everyone sees. Straight or with a gentle curve, a border course along both edges, and a proper landing at the stoop so the top step is a full stride.
Replace a cracked concrete walk
The old walk is broken out and hauled, the base rebuilt, and pavers laid in its place at the same width or wider. The heaved slab at the stoop goes away for good.
Side-yard path
A narrow walk between the house and the fence, usually where the grass will not grow and the ground is always muddy. Pavers or stepping slabs on a compacted base, graded to move water toward the yard, not the foundation.
Path to a patio, shed or garage door
Ties two things together so you are not cutting a line across the lawn. Matched to the patio pavers when we built the patio.
Stepping-stone slabs in turf or rock
Large slabs set individually on a compacted base with grass or rock between them. Less excavation than a full walk and a good fit for a path that is not the main entrance.
Paver Walkway Installation — Front Walks and Paths: questions, answered
How wide should a front walkway be?
Wide enough for two people to walk side by side, which is wider than most builder-grade concrete walks. Side paths and paths to a shed can be narrower. The width also sets the paver pattern: some widths let the pavers run without cuts, so we suggest a width that works with the paver you pick.
Can you replace my concrete front walk with pavers?
Yes. The concrete is broken out and hauled, the soil under it is excavated to the depth the base needs, and the walk is rebuilt in pavers on compacted class 5. Where the old walk was heaved at the stoop, the new walk is set flat to the top step. It usually takes two to three days including the demolition.
Do paver walkways heave in Minnesota winters?
A paver walk on a properly compacted base moves a little with the frost and settles back in spring; that is the point of a flexible base. Heaving comes from a shallow base, water trapped under the walk, or no edge restraint letting the edges creep. We build the base deep, grade the walk to shed water, and restrain both edges. If a paver ever does settle, it can be lifted and reset in an hour.
Can you shovel and salt a paver walkway?
Yes. Concrete pavers handle a snow shovel and a snowblower the same as concrete, and they hold up better than a broom-finished slab under salt. Polymeric sand in the joints keeps the shovel from catching an edge. A plastic-edged shovel is easier on the surface than a steel one, but that is true of concrete too.
Do you need a site visit to quote a walkway?
Usually not. A front walk on a normal grade is quoted from two photos and a length within a business day. We come out when the walk has steps, the yard drops along the run, or the walk is part of a patio job that is being measured anyway.
What happens to the lawn and beds along the new walk?
The excavation disturbs a strip on each side. We keep it as narrow as the base allows, and when the walk is done the edges are backfilled with topsoil and patched with sod or seed, and any bed edging is put back. A steel or paver edge along a bed can be added at the same time so the mulch stays off the walk.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough. You hear back within one business day. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
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Read morePage reviewed September 24, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All pavers pages
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