Bobcat grading in Delray Beach, FL: we cut, fill and shape the ground so a lot drains, a pad sits level for the next trade, and a driveway has a firm base. Bobcat T740 with a 60" grapple, $1,385/day with an operator, from our yard in Loxahatchee. Call (561) 779-3213 for a free site walk.
Grading is the job that comes after the vegetation is gone and before the next trade shows up: the dirt itself is cut, filled and sloped so water leaves the lot the way it should and whatever is built next sits on a firm, level base. In Delray Beach that usually means one of four things — a building pad on an infill or teardown-rebuild lot, drainage grading toward a swale or the street, a driveway base, or fill placed and shaped where a low spot keeps holding water.
Delray Beach is an incorporated city with its own Development Services Building Division, so who signs off differs from the unincorporated-county process we run in Loxahatchee and The Acreage. We confirm what applies to your address with the City before booking, and we tell you plainly if the answer is "it depends on the parcel". Clearing is a different scope with its own page: see land clearing in Delray Beach.
Tell us the address, what the ground needs to do when we are finished — drain, sit level, carry a driveway — and you get a straight answer within 24 hours and a free walk of the site before a number is written. (561) 779-3213.
The Bobcat T740 and 60" grapple that does our clearing also cuts, fills and shapes the ground underneath.
The Grading Jobs a Delray Beach Lot Actually Asks For
Delray Beach runs from a 1920s-platted historic core near downtown, through large gated 55+ communities further west, to established non-gated neighbourhoods and canal-front lots in East Delray. Which one your lot is in decides how the job is approved; the grading itself falls into four kinds.
1 · Infill and teardown-rebuild pads
After a house comes down, the pad has to be cut level, compacted and shaped before the new foundation crew arrives. We leave it clean and build-ready, working from the same crew and licence, CGC1528750, that would pull the City permit for what follows.
2 · Drainage grading
Low spots that hold water after every rain and grades that push runoff toward a neighbour get re-sloped so water moves toward a swale or the street. Grading near a canal bank, culvert or easement is a question for whoever owns that infrastructure, answered before the bucket moves.
3 · Driveway base and approach
Shaping and firming the base ahead of pavers, concrete, asphalt or shell rock. Our driveway site-prep page covers the full sequence.
4 · Fill placement and shaping
Where a lot needs dirt brought in and spread to a grade, the grapple spreads and shapes it. See fill dirt & excavation for how fill is scoped.
Who Approves What in Delray Beach
The City. Delray Beach is incorporated, with its own Development Services Building Division at 100 NW 1st Avenue, (561) 243-7200. A licensed contractor holds a City permit and is present at final inspection. We have not verified from the City's published code a specific grading or tree-removal permit threshold, and we will not guess at one: we confirm the requirement for your address with the City before any work is scheduled. The county-wide picture is in our permits and regulations guide.
The historic districts. The City's Historic Preservation Board requires a Certificate of Appropriateness for exterior work on a contributing property in Del-Ida Park, the Old School Square Historic Arts District, Nassau Park, the Marina Historic District and the West Settlers Historic District. Whether a given grading job triggers that review is a question for the City for your parcel; if your address is inside one of those districts, ask before you book anyone.
The community. Kings Point and Rainberry Bay, both large 55+ gated communities, run their own condo or HOA architectural approval, and site work visible from a common area commonly needs association sign-off in addition to the City. Lake Ida, Osceola Park and the canal-front lots of Tropic Isle do not carry that historic or association layer, so those jobs typically move on the City side alone.
Storm Exposure and Why the Grade Matters
All of Delray Beach sits inside the Florida Building Code's Wind-Borne Debris Region, and oceanfront and Intracoastal parcels carry the highest design wind speeds in the county. For grading the practical point is water rather than wind: a lot that sheds rain correctly handles June-through-November storm rain better than one that ponds against a foundation. Storm debris itself is a clearing job; see the storm debris cleanup guide.
What Bobcat Grading Costs in Delray Beach
Grading is priced by the day, not by the acre, because the passes needed to get a slope right depend on how far from level the ground starts rather than on its square footage.
Bounded grading jobs
Drainage fix, small pad, driveway approach
$1,385 · half-day to one day
The T740 with grapple and an operator, at the same $1,385/day rate quoted everywhere on this site — no Delray Beach surcharge.
Full building pad with fill
Multi-day, priced by scope
Days follow the work: how much has to be cut or filled, whether fill is brought in, and how tight the access is. The cost guide explains what moves a land-work price.
🧮
Want your own number before you call? The estimator on the main land page takes three taps and needs no email. Price your job ↗
The Honest Version of Our Delray Beach Track Record
We don't have a named Delray Beach grading project to point to, and we would rather say so than dress up a job that isn't ours. What we can put in front of you is the credential stack: Florida Certified General Contractor CGC1528750, a statewide licence, and a BBB A+ Accredited Business rating. We hold a Palm Beach County Business Tax Receipt; we do not hold, and do not claim, a City of Delray Beach receipt. The owner has worked in Palm Beach County for 17 years and runs self-performing crews on owned equipment.
The free site walk is where that stack is tested against your actual lot, in person, before any money changes hands.
🚜
The walk is free and it is the whole point. We name the scope — pad, drainage, driveway base or fill — flag the City and association questions plainly, and tell you honestly what it will take. Bobcat T740 with 60" grapple and operator, $1,385/day. Licensed & insured, CGC1528750, held by a Florida corporation formed in 2009.
Who permits what across Palm Beach County, and a pre-work checklist.
Bobcat Grading in Delray Beach — FAQ
What is bobcat grading, and how is it different from land clearing?
Clearing removes what is growing on a lot; grading moves and shapes the dirt underneath it. A lot that is already free of brush but holds water after every rain is a grading job, and the Bobcat T740's grapple bucket cuts high spots and fills low ones until the ground sheds water and sits level.
Do you do bobcat grading in Delray Beach, FL?
Yes. We grade Delray Beach lots — building pads, drainage, driveway bases and fill placement — with a Bobcat T740 and 60-inch grapple at $1,385 per day with an operator. Our yard is at 16140 Okeechobee Blvd in Loxahatchee. Call (561) 779-3213 for a free site walk.
How much does bobcat grading cost in Delray Beach?
Our published rate is $1,385 per day with an operator, with no Delray Beach surcharge. A drainage fix, small pad or driveway approach is often a half-day to one-day booking; a full building pad with fill runs more days. The free site walk gives the real number before anything is written down.
Can you grade a building pad after a teardown in Delray Beach?
Yes. We cut and compact the pad and leave it clean and build-ready for the foundation crew. Whether the lot needs City sign-off first depends on the parcel, and we confirm that with the City before booking.
Do I need a City of Delray Beach permit for grading?
It depends on the work and the parcel. The City's Development Services Building Division, 100 NW 1st Avenue, (561) 243-7200, makes that call. We have not verified a specific grading permit threshold from the City's published code and will not guess at one; we confirm the requirement for your address before scheduling.
Does grading in a Delray Beach historic district need extra approval?
Exterior work on a contributing property in Del-Ida Park, the Old School Square Historic Arts District, Nassau Park, the Marina Historic District or the West Settlers Historic District requires a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic Preservation Board. Whether a particular grading job triggers it is a question for the City for your parcel, so ask before you book.
Does my HOA need to approve grading in Kings Point or Rainberry Bay?
Commonly, yes. Both are large 55+ gated communities that run their own condo or HOA architectural approval, and site work visible from a common area usually needs association sign-off in addition to any City permit. Check with your association before work is scheduled.
Can you fix a Delray Beach yard that floods after every rain?
Often. Re-sloping so water moves toward a swale or the street is a common grading job. Grading near a canal bank, culvert or easement is a question for the owner of that infrastructure, which we confirm before the machine moves, and some drainage problems need an engineer rather than a Bobcat.
Have you completed a named grading project in Delray Beach?
No named Delray Beach grading project is on our record, and we would rather tell you that than dress up a job that isn't ours. What we have is Florida Certified General Contractor licence CGC1528750, a BBB A+ Accredited Business rating, and 17 years of the owner working in Palm Beach County. We hold a Palm Beach County Business Tax Receipt and do not claim a City of Delray Beach receipt.
Are you licensed and insured for grading work?
Yes. Bell Land Services operates under Bell Engineering and Construction Corporation, Florida Certified General Contractor CGC1528750, licensed and insured and incorporated in Florida in 2009. A Business Tax Receipt is not a contractor licence; the licence is the CGC.
