Land clearing, site prep and dirt work across southeast MississippiLand clearing in southeast Mississippi
Presto Contractors
Dozer with GPS masts grading a gravel pad on a commercial site, civil construction
Our Services

Industrial and Commercial Civil Construction in Waynesboro, MS

Civil Construction · Waynesboro, MS

The civil and dirt side of mills and plants

Industrial and commercial civil construction is the dirt side of a plant or a commercial development. Presto Contractors is a civil contractor based in Waynesboro in Wayne County. We grade yards, cut ditches, build pads for buildings and equipment, and put in haul roads and log yards. One company can handle the clearing, the dirt, the pipe and the old structures.

We work at sawmills and paper mills, and for timber and forestry companies. Our excavators and dozers do the dirt work, and our own dump trucks haul the rock and fill. Pads and lease roads on oil and gas locations are part of our oilfield services.

What We Handle

  • Yard grading and drainage at mills and plant sites
  • Pads for buildings and equipment, built up with fill and rock
  • Haul roads and log yards on a firm rock base
  • Ditches and culverts that carry water off the yard
  • Water, sewer and storm drain lines, plus conduit trenches
  • Old structures and slabs taken down and hauled off
  • Rock and fill hauled in and spoil hauled out on our own trucks
  • Clearing and grubbing to open up a new commercial site

Request a Civil Construction Quote

Tell us about the land, the lot or the job. We look at the site and put the quote in writing.

Civil Site Work at Mills and Plant Sites

Civil site work at a mill or a plant comes down to water and weight. Waynesboro gets about 60 inches of rain in a normal year, per NOAA, so a yard has to shed water. The ground also has to carry loaded trucks and heavy equipment. We grade yards to ditches and culverts and build pads with fill and rock, shaped to drain.

Log yards and haul roads take loaded log trucks all day. Some Wayne County clay swells when wet and shrinks when dry, per NRCS soil data. So these roads and yards need a firm rock base and grades that move water off the surface. We have graded a dirt pad beside a mill building and a gravel yard beside a plant building.

Underground lines go in before the yard gets its final grade. We lay water lines, sewer lines and storm drain pipe and cut conduit trenches for the electrician. Mississippi 811 says most lines on private property belong to the property owner. Utilities usually mark their lines only to the meter or the property line, so the plant's own drawings matter.

Who Needs a Civil Contractor in Southeast Mississippi?

The Piney Woods grew up on timber, and pulpwood and paper became important industries here after World War II. Forest industries employ about a quarter of Mississippi's manufacturing workforce, per MSU Extension. The same source counts forest-related work at about 13 percent of the jobs in Wayne County.

Wayne County has two industrial parks, one in south Waynesboro and one along the US 45 corridor. The county lists a lumber mill and plywood and veneer operations among the businesses there. Plants like these need graded yards and roads that carry loaded trucks.

Developers and commercial property owners need the same ground work before a building goes up. The lot is cleared and graded, then the pad and the site utilities go in.

Commercial Excavation for a New Building Site

On a new commercial site, the ground work runs in a set order. We clear and grub the lot, do the excavation and dirt work, lay the pipe and shape the pad. As the sitework contractor, we can take the job from the first cut to the finished pad.

In Mississippi, clearing or grading one acre or more falls under state stormwater permits from MDEQ. At five acres or more, the site owner files a notice of intent and a site stormwater plan with MDEQ. MDEQ's small construction permit leaves out routine upkeep, such as regrading an existing dirt road. In Alabama, ADEM's construction stormwater permit also starts at one acre.

Call or text (601) 410-5339 with the location and what the site needs. Send photos and a pin. If an engineer drew site plans, send those too. The quote comes in writing after we look at the site.

Excavator loading an articulated hauler on a large industrial site, civil construction Graded dirt yard in a lumber mill beside a long metal building and stacked lumber, civil construction

Ready to get started?

Call or text for a written quote anywhere across southeast Mississippi and southwest Alabama, about 70 miles around Waynesboro.

(601) 410-5339
How We Work

How a Job With Presto Contractors Runs

From the first call or text to finished ground, here is how it goes.

1

Call or text

Call or text (601) 410-5339 and tell us about the land and the job. Send photos and a pin if you like.

2

We look at the site

We come out to see the ground and how the equipment gets in. For a simple job, photos and a pin may be enough.

3

The quote in writing

You get the quote in writing, with the job spelled out. We start when you say go.

4

The work

We do the clearing, mulching, dirt work, utilities or demolition the quote calls for. Fill and rock come in on our own trucks when the job needs them.

5

The finish

The debris is gone, and you have clean, graded ground or mulched ground with the trees you chose still standing. We take a final look at it with you.

FAQ

Civil Construction Questions, Answered

Common questions about civil construction across southeast Mississippi and southwest Alabama, about 70 miles around Waynesboro. If yours is not here, call or text and ask.

Call (601) 410-5339

What is civil construction?
Civil construction is the ground work under a project: clearing, grading, drainage, pads, roads and underground pipe. On an industrial construction job, that means graded yards, equipment pads, haul roads and site utilities. We do the civil work, and other trades pour the concrete and put up the building.
What does an industrial contractor do at a sawmill or paper mill?
The civil side of a mill is the ground it runs on. That means log yards, haul roads, pads for new equipment and drainage for the whole yard. The same work fits a plywood plant or a timber company's site.
How much does commercial site work cost?
It depends on the site and the plans. Acreage, the dirt to cut or fill, the rock to haul in and the pipe to lay set the price. Wet ground and the drive from Waynesboro add to it. We look at the site and the plans, then put the quote in writing.
Can you take down old buildings on a plant site?
Yes. We take down old structures and break out slabs and foundations, and the debris leaves on our own trucks. In Mississippi, a commercial or industrial building gets an asbestos inspection before demolition starts. MDEQ also gets a demolition notice ten working days ahead.
How far will you travel for industrial work?
Our home range is about 70 miles around Waynesboro, across southeast Mississippi and southwest Alabama. Industrial and civil work takes us across Mississippi and into Alabama, Louisiana and the Florida Panhandle. Call or text (601) 410-5339 with the location and the scope.
Do you do residential civil work too?
Yes. On a house lot, the civil work is site prep for the house pad. That covers the clearing, the pad built up with fill, the driveway entrance and the drainage.
More From Presto Contractors

Work That Pairs With Civil Construction

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Oilfield Services

Location pads and lease roads for oil and gas operators in the Wayne County and south Alabama fields. Rock and dirt go on and off location in our own trucks.

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Underground Utilities

We trench and lay water and sewer lines, storm pipe and culverts for houses and commercial sites. We also cut conduit trenches for your electrician and backfill them.

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Excavation

Excavators and dozers for cut and fill, digging, ditches, drainage and grading. Dirt comes in and goes out on our own trucks.

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Why Choose Presto Contractors

Built for Land Clearing and Site Work Around Waynesboro

Our Own Equipment and Trucks

Excavators, dozers, skid steers, a mulching head, a tree shear, root rakes and a bush hog do the work. Our own dump trucks haul the debris off and bring the fill in.

Clearing and Site Prep Together

One company clears the land and builds the pad on the same job. Underground utilities and demolition fit in when the site needs them.

A Written Quote First

We look at the site, or you send photos and a pin, and we put the quote in writing. It spells out the work before a machine rolls in.

Based in Waynesboro, Working Two States

We are based in Waynesboro in Wayne County, about 15 miles from the Alabama line. We work about 70 miles out across southeast Mississippi and southwest Alabama.

Request a Quote

Get In Touch With Presto Contractors

Tell us about the land or the job, and text photos if you have them. Call or text (601) 410-5339 or use the form, and we will get back to you.

  • Call or text (601) 410-5339
  • Waynesboro, MS · serving southeast Mississippi and southwest Alabama, about 70 miles around Waynesboro
  • Written quotes · land clearing, site prep, dirt work, utilities and demolition

Request a Quote

Tell us about the land, the lot or the job. We look at the site and put the quote in writing.

Call (601) 410-5339