What You’ll Actually Pay for Patios, Walkways & Pool Decks in Tice - and How Long It Takes
A new paver patio, a poured concrete pool deck, or a full walkway replacement in Tice typically runs between $3,500 and $11,000, depending on square footage, material choice, and what we find under the existing slab or soil. Most projects we build here take five to seven working days from demolition to final compaction, though post-Ian permit queues at the Lee County building department can add a week or more to the schedule if inspections are required on your specific lot. Call (844) 638-7249 and we’ll give you a fixed, line-item price before any dirt moves - no surprises, no change-order games.
How We Build Patios, Walkways, and Pool Decks - Stage by Stage
Every hardscape job we do in Tice follows the same sequence, but the specifics change based on what you’re building and what’s already underground. We walk you through each decision point so you’re never guessing what happens next.
Stage 1: Layout, locate, and mark. We stake the footprint of your patio, walkway, or pool deck right on the ground and spray-paint the exact lines. Our crew calls Sunshine 811 before we arrive so underground utilities get marked by the locator service - this is a Florida legal requirement, not optional, and it usually takes 48 hours. You approve the layout in person before we move to the next step. We also walk the site for drainage. In Tice, where the water table sits high and standing water after a summer downpour is common, we grade every hardscape surface at a minimum 1/8-inch-per-foot slope away from the house. Getting this slope wrong is how you end up with water pooling against your foundation six months later.
Stage 2: Demo and subgrade prep. If there’s an existing slab or old pavers, we cut and remove it on day one. Then we excavate to the correct depth - typically six to ten inches below finished grade, depending on the material we’re installing and whether we’re tying into an existing pool coping or foundation edge. In Tice’s older homes, we regularly find surprises during this stage: abandoned septic lines, buried construction debris from the original build, or soil so saturated from poor lot drainage that it won’t compact. We deal with each one before we put anything back in the ground. Subgrade gets compacted with a plate compactor and tested for stability. If it won’t hold, we undercut and bring in clean fill - we don’t build over mush.
Stage 3: Base and bedding layer. We lay a minimum four inches of compacted crushed stone base, leveled and sloped per plan. For paver patios and walkways we add a one-inch sand setting bed on top, screeded flat. For concrete pool decks, this is where we build the forms and tie rebar. Every base we install in Tice accounts for our soil reality - high moisture, high organic content in some lots near the Caloosahatchee floodplain, and the expansion and contraction that happens every wet-dry cycle. Skip the stone depth here and you’ll have pavers shifting and concrete cracking inside two years.
Stage 4: Installation and finishing. Pavers get laid to your chosen pattern, cut to fit edges, and filled with polymeric sand that locks them together and resists weed growth. Concrete slabs get poured, floated, and textured - broom-finished, exposed aggregate, or stamped - and control joints are tooled in before the concrete cures. Walkways get edged with a rigid border restraint to keep them from drifting over time. This stage also includes any steps, landings, or transitions we’re building between different elevations on the property.
Stage 5: Compaction, joint fill, cleanup. We run the plate compactor over the finished surface (for pavers), activate the polymeric sand with a light mist, and clean the site. We walk the finished job with you to confirm every line, slope, and edge is right. You get a written care sheet - how to keep the joints full, when to reseal, and what not to park on - so your investment holds up through Tice summers for years.
The Options You’ll Choose Between
Every hardscape material has a trade-off, and the right choice depends on how you use the surface, how much Florida sun it takes, and what you want to spend. We carry a curated range from Belgard, Tremron, and Unilock so you’re picking from brands that hold up - not whatever was cheapest at the big-box store.
- Concrete pavers. The most common choice for Tice patios and walkways. They handle our wet-dry cycles without cracking because each paver moves independently. Sold in dozens of shapes, colors, and textures. Expect $7-$14 per square foot installed. Resists heaving better than slab concrete in our soil. Sealing every few years keeps the color from fading under Tice’s relentless summer sun.
- Poured concrete. A strong choice for pool decks where you want a continuous, smooth surface underfoot. Broom finish runs $6-$10 per square foot; stamped concrete with color and pattern adds $3-$7 more. Will eventually develop hairline cracks in our expansive soil - control joints manage where it happens. We use a heavier rebar schedule in Tice specifically to reduce slab movement.
- Natural stone and travertine. High-end pool deck material that stays cooler under bare feet than concrete or pavers - a real consideration when the Tice sun has been beating down on it since March. Costs run $12-$22 per square foot installed. Travertine is porous and needs periodic sealing. Stone holds up beautifully but the material cost alone can double the total project price versus standard pavers.
- Brick and clay pavers. A classic look that suits some of Tice’s midcentury homes. Tight joints, rich color, and they wear like iron. Pricing is comparable to concrete pavers at the mid-to-upper end. Color won’t fade. The trade-off: fewer size and pattern options, and they can feel slick when wet around a pool.
What Patios, Walkways & Pool Decks Costs in Tice, FL
For a typical Tice patio, walkway, or pool deck, you’re looking at $3,500 on the low end (a compact 10’x10′ broom-finished concrete pad with basic access) up to $11,000 or more (a 400-square-foot Belgard paver patio with retaining edges and a curved layout). The midpoint for a well-sized paver patio around 200 square feet, with good base prep and a standard pattern, usually lands between $5,500 and $7,800.
Five things move the price: square footage is the biggest lever - more area means more excavation, more material, and more labor hours. Material grade jumps the per-square-foot cost significantly; basic Tremron concrete pavers cost less installed than tumbled Unilock stone-look units. Access difficulty matters in Tice - if we can’t get a skid steer into your backyard because of a narrow side-yard easement or an existing pool cage, we’re moving material by hand, and that takes longer. Subgrade condition is the wild card - if we dig and find saturated muck or buried debris (common here), the prep cost goes up. Permit and inspection requirements add a line item; not every hardscape job triggers a permit in unincorporated Lee County, but anything attached to a pool deck, involving substantial grading, or tied to a larger Driveway & Pavers in Tice project frequently does.
Every estimate we write is a fixed-price, line-item document. You see exactly what you’re paying for: materials, labor, base depth, any retaining edges, waste removal, and permit fees if applicable. We don’t bury “mobilization charges” or spring change orders on you mid-job. If you’re considering a Full Kitchen Remodeling project down the line and want the hardscape staged now so the backyard is finished before interior work begins, our Full Kitchen Remodeling in Tice and outdoor-living teams coordinate the schedule so you’re not living on a construction site twice.
What Tice Homes Specifically Do to This Job
Building patios, walkways, and pool decks in Tice means working with 1950s-through-1970s concrete block homes on lots that were graded long before modern drainage standards existed. We deal with three realities on nearly every hardscape job here. First, the soil. Tice sits in a high-water-table zone where heavy summer rain leaves lawns saturated and standing water is routine. Every patio and walkway we build gets an extra inch of stone base beyond the manufacturer’s minimum spec, and we grade the surface slope with zero margin for error - water must sheet away from the foundation. Second, the permitting delay. Because Tice is unincorporated, every permit flows through the Lee County building department in Fort Myers. Post-Ian, inspection backlogs mean a hardscape job that triggers a review can sit waiting on a county inspector for days longer than you’d expect, sometimes a week or more. We pre-schedule inspections at permit submission to keep your job moving - contractors who wait until the work is done to call for inspection end up stalled mid-project. Third, the existing house. Many Tice homes have original concrete walkways and stoops poured sixty years ago, settling and cracked from decades of soil movement. Tying a new patio or walkway into that old slab work without creating a trip hazard or a drainage trap takes careful transitioning. Our Driveway & Pavers crew has done enough of these transitions across Tice to know exactly what works and what doesn’t.
A growing number of Tice homeowners are also pairing hardscape work with an ADU or addition. If you’re expanding the footprint of the house, the patio and walkway layout should be planned alongside the foundation work so the two phases tie together seamlessly. Our ADU Site Prep & Utilities in Tice team coordinates with our hardscape crew so the grading, drainage, and access all align from day one. That kind of upfront coordination saves you from tearing out brand-new pavers six months later because the ADU addition changed the property’s drainage pattern.
Serving Tice, FL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Tice area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
Frequently Asked - Patios, Walkways & Pool Decks in Tice
Five to seven working days is typical for most hardscape projects in Tice - that covers demolition of any existing surface, subgrade prep, base installation, and finishing. If your project requires a Lee County permit, add lead time for permit issuance and inspection scheduling. We factor the inspection queue into your timeline at the start so you’re never surprised by a multi-day delay waiting for a county inspector.
It depends on the scope. A standalone paver patio or walkway that doesn’t attach to the house or involve substantial grading may not trigger a permit in unincorporated Lee County. Pool decks that modify existing pool coping or drainage, any hardscape tied to a covered structure, and any project involving significant elevation changes typically do. We determine permit requirements during your on-site estimate and handle all filings so you don’t have to navigate the county system yourself. Call (844) 638-7249 and we’ll let you know what your specific job needs.
Not if the base is built right. Tice’s soil is challenging - high moisture, some organic content, and regular saturation cycles - but proper subgrade prep handles it. We excavate to a full six-to-ten-inch depth, compact the subgrade, and lay a minimum four-inch crushed stone base compacted in lifts. That stone layer distributes the load and drains water away from the pavers. We also use a rigid edge restraint around the entire perimeter so the pavers can’t drift outward over time.
A broom-finished concrete pool deck in Tice typically runs $6-$10 per square foot, while concrete pavers range from $7-$14 installed. The pavers cost more upfront, but they tolerate ground movement better - if a section settles or heaves, we can lift and re-grade individual pavers. A cracked concrete slab usually means cutting and replacing a full section. For a 300-square-foot pool deck, the total job difference is roughly $1,500 to $4,000 more for pavers. Call (844) 638-7249 for an exact quote on your square footage and material choice.
Every patio, walkway, and pool deck we build is covered by our 730-Day Done Right Promise: if it’s not done right, we make it right. That’s two full years on workmanship, one of the longest guarantees in residential hardscape construction. Manufacturer warranties on materials like Belgard and Tremron pavers extend far beyond that. Combined, you’re covered on both the installation and the product for the long term.
Get a Fixed-Price Estimate for Your Tice Patio, Walkway, or Pool Deck
We’ll walk your property, talk through the material options that suit your home and how you use the space, and hand you a written price you can take to the bank - no ranges, no asterisks. Estimates are free and come with an honest conversation about what your specific Tice lot needs. Call (844) 638-7249 or book an on-site visit. A real person answers, day or night.
Written by Derek Hollenbeck, Owner at Groundwork Construction Co., serving Tice and Lee County with hardscape work built for Florida soil and weather.