Services

At Cornerstone Development Services, we specialize in providing top-tier Engineering, Surveying, Land Development and General Contracting solutions for both residential and commercial projects.

Surveying

Surveying is the art and science of determining the exact position of points on the Earth’s surface. It involves measuring the angles and distances between points to create accurate maps, plans, and legal descriptions of property boundaries.

Services Provided:

  • Boundary Surveys
  • Boundary Plats
  • As-Builts
  • Construction Staking
  • Topographic Surveys
  • ALTA Land Title Surveys
  • Land Subdivision

Why You Should Get a Boundary Survey

  • Avoid Costly Disputes: Getting a boundary survey before purchasing property clearly marks your property lines, helping prevent future disagreements with neighbors. Addressing potential boundary issues early saves you time and avoids unnecessary legal fees.

  • Verify Your Purchase: What you see isn’t always what you get. A survey confirms you are buying the exact tract of land you expect, ensuring you aren’t surprised later by a smaller lot size or the realization that specific features—like trees, buildings, or fences—are not actually on your property.

  • Build with Confidence: If you are planning to build, a boundary survey ensures your construction stays strictly on your land. This helps you avoid expensive mistakes, such as having to tear down a new garage or fence that accidentally encroaches on a neighbor’s property.

  • Invest in Peace of Mind: A boundary survey is a small, proactive investment compared to the confidence it brings. It ensures you know exactly what you own, allowing you to build safely and avoid legal complications down the road.

Should I Get a Boundary Plat with My Survey?

In addition to the physical markers placed during a Boundary Survey, a Boundary Plat (a detailed visual drawing of your survey) provides critical legal and practical benefits:

  • Identify Easements and Encroachments: A plat clearly maps out existing easements of record (the legal rights of others to use part of your land) and any encroachments (neighboring structures that overlap your property lines).

  • Uncover Hidden Issues: The drawing can reveal unseen problems, such as public utility lines crossing your buildable space or historical claims that might affect how you can use and develop the land.

  • Secure Certified Documentation: You receive a formal, written record and a precise picture of your property boundaries. Certified by a Licensed Surveyor, this document serves as permanent, legal evidence of your property lines and referenced features for perpetuity.

Engineering

Civil engineering is the backbone of our communities. It is the practice of designing, building, and maintaining the physical infrastructure we use every day—from the roads we drive on to the systems that provide clean water and prevent flooding.

Services Provided:

  • Site Planning and Development
  • Grading and Drainage
  • Utility Design
  • Stormwater Management
  • Erosion and Sediment Control
  • Permitting and Regulatory Approval

Why You Need a Civil Engineer for Your Project

  • Ensure Site Viability: Before you invest heavily in construction, a civil engineering evaluation confirms your land can physically and legally support your vision. This helps you identify potential zoning, environmental, or topographical roadblocks before they become expensive problems.

  • Build on a Solid Foundation: A successful project starts from the ground up. Proper engineering ensures your site is graded and stabilized correctly, preventing future structural issues caused by settling or shifting soil.

  • Prevent Flooding and Water Damage: Water is a property’s biggest enemy. Civil engineers design smart drainage and stormwater management systems that safely direct rainwater away from your structures, protecting your investment from water damage and erosion.

  • Navigate Red Tape Smoothly: Because engineers understand strict local building codes and municipal requirements, they design your project to pass inspection the first time. This streamlines the permitting process and saves you from frustrating, costly construction delays.

What is Included in a Comprehensive Site Plan?

Similar to how a boundary plat visualizes your survey, a Civil Site Plan (or construction blueprint) provides the detailed, actionable drawings needed to physically build your project. A standard site plan includes:

  • Precise Grading & Drainage Designs: Detailed blueprints showing exactly how the earth must be shaped and where surface water will be routed. This often includes designs for retention ponds or underground stormwater storage.

  • Utility Connection Layouts: Clear mapping of how your new structures will safely and efficiently connect to public water mains, sanitary sewers, and other essential underground utilities.

  • Roadway & Access Planning: Engineered designs for safe entrances, exits, driveways, and parking lots. This ensures the pavement can handle expected traffic loads while meeting safety and accessibility standards.

  • Erosion Control Plans: Mandated environmental safeguards that detail how soil and sediment will be kept secure during the construction phase, keeping your job site compliant with local government inspectors.

Land Development

Land development is the process of transforming raw land into usable spaces for various purposes, such as residential, commercial, industrial, or recreational. It involves a series of planning, engineering, and construction activities to create functional and aesthetically pleasing environments.

Services Provided:

  • Land Use
  • Subdivision Design
  • Feasibility Studies

Why You Need Professional Land Development Services

  • Maximize Your Property’s Potential: Land development experts help you determine the “highest and best use” of your land. Whether you are subdividing a large rural tract into residential lots or planning a commercial center, professional guidance ensures you get the most value out of your investment.

  • Mitigate Financial Risk: Developing raw land is complex. A professional evaluation assesses the feasibility of your project early on, identifying potential zoning restrictions, environmental hurdles, and hidden infrastructure costs before you commit significant capital.

  • Streamline a Complex Process: Taking a property from an empty field to a buildable site involves a lot of moving parts. A development team acts as your quarterback, coordinating the surveyors, civil engineers, contractors, and city planners to keep the project on schedule and on budget.

  • Navigate Zoning and Regulations: Local land use laws can be difficult to interpret. Development professionals understand the nuances of municipal zoning and can effectively advocate for your project during public hearings, rezoning requests, or variance applications.

What is Included in a Master Development Plan?

While civil engineering focuses on the technical construction details, a Master Development Plan looks at the big picture. It provides the strategic roadmap for turning a concept into reality. A comprehensive plan typically includes:

  • Feasibility & Site Analysis: A thorough initial report detailing the physical and regulatory constraints of the property, including topography, access to existing utilities, and environmental factors.

  • Conceptual Site Layouts: High-level visual drawings showing the proposed arrangement of building lots, roadways, green spaces, and commercial zones to help you and local officials visualize the final project.

  • Zoning & Entitlement Strategy: A clear, step-by-step roadmap for acquiring the necessary legal approvals, including plans for rezoning, conditional use permits, or formally subdividing the land.

  • Phasing & Infrastructure Planning: For larger projects, the plan outlines how the development will be built in stages over time, and how major infrastructure (like main neighborhood roads and regional stormwater systems) will be integrated to support future growth.

General Contracting

General contracting is a professional service that oversees the planning, coordination, and execution of construction projects. A general contractor acts as a liaison between the project owner and the various subcontractors involved in the project.

Services Provided:

  • New Home Construction
  • Home Additions
  • Remodeling and Renovations

Why You Need a Professional General Contractor

  • Streamline the Construction Process: Building is complex, but it shouldn’t be stressful for you. A general contractor serves as your single point of contact, coordinating dozens of specialized trades so you don’t have to manage the daily chaos of a busy job site.

  • Keep Your Project on Time and Budget: Experienced contractors anticipate supply chain delays and scheduling conflicts before they happen. They actively manage the project timeline and finances, protecting you from unexpected cost overruns and delays.

  • Ensure Superior Quality Control: A general contractor oversees every phase of the build. They hire vetted, reliable subcontractors and rigorously monitor the work to ensure everything meets strict quality standards and local building codes.

  • Mitigate Risk and Liability: Professional contractors are fully licensed, bonded, and insured. They handle the unexpected hurdles of construction, enforce strict on-site safety protocols, and protect you from financial and legal liabilities.

What is Included in General Contracting Services?

While engineering and development planning set the stage, general contracting is what physically brings your project out of the ground. A comprehensive construction management package typically includes:

  • Accurate Estimating & Bidding: Detailed, transparent pricing breakdowns and scopes of work, ensuring you understand exactly what materials and labor are required to complete your vision.

  • Subcontractor Coordination: Sourcing, hiring, and seamlessly scheduling the specialized trades—such as heavy equipment operators, concrete crews, and framers—needed to execute each phase of the build.

  • Permitting & Inspections: Managing the administrative side of construction by pulling the final building permits and scheduling mandatory municipal inspections at each crucial milestone to keep the project compliant.

  • Dedicated Site Supervision: Providing active, on-site management to oversee daily operations, coordinate material deliveries, enforce safety rules, and ensure the project transitions smoothly from a set of blueprints into a finished reality.