Asphalt Paving in Charlestown, IN

What does Charlestown's ground do to a driveway?

Federal soil maps show two kinds of ground that matter for paving in Charlestown. Parts of town sit on deep, well drained silt loam over rolling karst. Karst is ground where sinkholes form, and the Indiana DNR points them out in Charlestown State Park.

Other parts carry a fragipan, a dense layer of subsoil about two to three feet down. Water moves through it slowly, so rain perches on top of it in wet seasons. Wet subsoil under a driveway gives the base less support. The USDA soil survey rates both kinds very limited for local roads and streets, mostly for frost action.

NOAA normals give the station just north of town about 53 inches of rain and melted snow a year. NOAA's Scottsburg station averages about 114 days a year with a low at or below freezing. Only about 19 of those days stay at or below freezing all day. The rest climb above freezing by afternoon, and that cycle is hard on a base that holds water.

So the work starts below the surface. We grade the site so water runs off the pavement and away from its edges. Then we build and compact a crushed stone base before the hot-mix asphalt goes down.

Charlestown's older homes and newer subdivisions

About three in four Charlestown homes are single-family detached houses, by Census Bureau survey figures. Roughly four in ten were built before 1980, and the median year built is 1988. The oldest homes cluster around downtown and Charlestown Square, where the city's historic buildings stand.

An older driveway on a sound base can often take an overlay. Asphalt resurfacing fits that case, and we mill the edges first where the grade needs it. A driveway with a failed base needs asphalt milling or full removal, then a rebuilt base.

Charlestown is still growing. The city's plan names new subdivisions such as Ashley Springs and projects 8,757 residents by 2029. The 2020 Census counted 7,775. A new driveway on a new lot needs the same base work as an old one.

Parking lots along State Road 3 and State Road 62

Two state roads, State Road 3 and State Road 62, are the main roads in and out of Charlestown. Through town, State Road 3 is Market Street. The city's plan flags State Road 3 as prone to flooding from Greenway Park north toward Charlestown High School. That stretch is mostly commercial and institutional land with large parking areas.

Charlestown's zoning code requires parking areas for five or more cars to be graded and paved with an all-weather surface. Asphalt is one of the materials it names, and it calls for marked stalls and directional arrows. Grading for drainage is part of our parking lot paving work, and we stripe the lots we pave.

The plan also notes the many driveway entrances along State Road 3 and suggests shared or combined business entrances. If your lot is up for repaving, ask the office for that road about the entrance before the work starts.

South of downtown, much of the old Indiana Army Ammunition Plant land is now River Ridge Commerce Center. It lists 6,000 acres of master-planned land zoned for industry and commerce. The city's plan calls it Charlestown's biggest driver of jobs.

Who approves a new driveway in Charlestown?

It depends on the road the driveway meets. Inside city limits, the Building Commissioner's office at City Hall handles permits, and applications go through the city's online system. The city's zoning code uses a Location Improvement Permit for changes to land. City Hall can tell you when one applies.

The city's streets page lists State Road 62 as INDOT's road. INDOT says a driveway permit is necessary to connect private property to its roads.

The same page puts Market Street and County Road 403 under the Clark County Highway Department. That department also handles the county roads outside city limits, and it has its own driveway permit application.

A paving job that digs or grades also needs a utility locate. Indiana law asks for at least two full working days' notice to Indiana 811 before work starts. A locate ticket stays good for 20 calendar days.