Land Grading in Scarborough — Yard, Driveway, Lot

We provide land grading in Scarborough for homeowners dealing with water pooling against foundations, sloping driveways that drain the wrong way, and full lot regrades after construction or pool work. Most of the Scarborough housing stock is 1960s-1980s subdivisions where the original lot grading has settled, shifted, or was never right to begin with. We fix that. Call 416-317-3090 for a site visit and a written grading plan.

Why Scarborough lots fail at drainage

Scarborough has three drainage problems we see repeatedly. First, Agincourt, Cedar Brae, and the inland subdivisions sit on heavy clay — water doesn’t percolate, it runs across the surface and sits wherever the slope flattens out. Second, 60s-80s builders graded to a 2% slope and called it done; 50 years of settling, tree roots, garden beds, and patio additions have wrecked that original grade. Third, anything within 500m of the Bluffs (Guildwood, Birch Cliff, Cliffside, Cliffcrest) is on unstable sandy soil where bad grading can accelerate slope failure.

If your basement is wet after every heavy rain in Scarborough, the fix is almost never waterproofing first — it’s grading first. Get the water moving away from the foundation, then evaluate whether you still have a leak.

What we grade in Scarborough

Yard regrading — back yards, side yards, the strip between you and the neighbour. Establish a positive slope away from the house, typically 2% minimum for the first 1.8m.
Driveway grading — fix driveways that pitch toward the garage or toward the house. Common on Scarborough split-levels and side-splits.
Full lot grading — after a new build, addition, pool install, or major landscaping. We work to the lot grading plan if one exists, or we set the grades to current City of Toronto standards.
Swale construction — shallow drainage channels along property lines, common requirement on Scarborough re-grades to move water to the street or rear catch basin.
Bluffs-area work — careful, drainage-first grading where any concentrated runoff toward the slope edge is unacceptable.

Our grading process

Site walk and shoot grades. We come out, walk the lot, and shoot elevations at the foundation, property lines, and any drainage targets (catch basins, street, rear lot line). One visit, no charge for the assessment.
Identify the problem. Often it’s a single low spot, a reversed driveway pitch, or a downspout dumping next to the wall. Sometimes it’s the whole yard.
Strip and stockpile topsoil. Topsoil gets pulled aside so we can rework the subgrade underneath.
Cut and fill the subgrade. We move clay or native soil to establish the new grade — 2% minimum away from the house, sloping toward your drainage target.
Replace topsoil, compact, finish. Topsoil back on top, raked smooth, ready for sod or seed. We can install sod the same week.

The Bluffs grading problem

If your Scarborough property backs onto the Bluffs — anywhere from Bluffer’s Park east to East Point — grading isn’t just about your basement. Concentrated runoff toward the bluff edge accelerates erosion and slope failure. We’ve seen homeowners install a “drainage solution” that points water straight at the slope. Don’t do that. On Bluffs-adjacent lots, we grade water away from the slope edge, often back toward the street side of the lot. TRCA regulates work within their setback in this part of Scarborough, and we account for that before we cut anything.

What grading typically runs in Scarborough

Small regrades — a side yard strip or a single low corner — usually land in the lower thousands once we factor in machine time, soil disposal, and finishing. Full back-yard regrades with swales and sod replacement on a typical Scarborough 40 x 120 lot run higher. Full lot grading after new construction is its own scope. We won’t quote sight unseen — the size of the cut, the disposal volume, and your access (front-lot only vs side gate) drive the price more than the square footage. Call 416-317-3090 and we’ll walk it.

Why homeowners pick OCM

We grade water away from the house first, decoration second.
We own the excavators and skid steers — we’re not subbing the dig.
We handle disposal. Scarborough clay haul-off is included in the quote.
We work across the east end daily — Agincourt, Malvern, Wexford, Birch Cliff, Guildwood, Highland Creek, West Hill.
One number on the quote. We don’t itemize disposal as a surprise after the dig.

For Toronto-wide context on our grading work, see our land grading Toronto page, or browse all GTA service areas we cover.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a permit to regrade my Scarborough yard?

For a residential regrade that doesn’t change the approved lot grading plan or move significant fill, usually no permit is required. If you’re altering grades that affect a neighbour’s drainage, doing a full lot regrade, or working in a TRCA-regulated area (Bluffs, ravines, valleys), permits or approvals come into play. We tell you upfront which bucket your Scarborough job falls into.

How long does a backyard regrade take?

A standard Scarborough back yard regrade is 2-4 working days for the grading itself, plus sod day. Larger lots, heavy disposal volumes, or tight side-gate access push that out. We give you a working window before we start, not a vague “couple weeks.”

My basement leaks — should I waterproof or regrade first?

Regrade first, almost always. Most Scarborough basement leaks are foundation walls getting hit by surface water pooling at the wall. Fix the grade, redirect the downspouts to 1.8m away from the foundation, and re-evaluate after the next big rain. Waterproofing a wall that’s still getting hammered by surface water is throwing money at the wrong problem.

Do you work on Bluffs-adjacent properties?

Yes, regularly. Guildwood, Cliffcrest, Birch Cliff, Cliffside — we grade properties on the bluff side of Kingston Road all the time. The rule there is no concentrated runoff toward the slope. If TRCA has setback restrictions on your lot, we work within them and won’t cut anything that requires their approval without it in hand.

Will you damage my existing landscaping?

We protect what we’re told to protect. Mature trees, established beds, hard landscape features — flag them and we work around them. On a full regrade, some plant material has to come out; we’ll tell you in advance what doesn’t survive and you can dig and transplant before we start.

Do you grade driveways separately from yards?

Yes. A reversed driveway pitch — water running toward your garage or front foundation — is one of the most common Scarborough fixes we do. It usually involves removing the existing driveway, regrading the base, and you’ll need a paver or concrete contractor to put the new surface back. We coordinate that.

Get a Scarborough grading quote

Call 416-317-3090 or use our free quote form. We’ll come walk the lot, shoot the grades, and tell you what’s actually causing your water problem before we quote the fix.