Asphalt Paving in Blairsville, GA

What mountain weather does to pavement in Blairsville

Blairsville sits close to 1,900 feet up, and the county climbs to Brasstown Bald, the highest mountain in Georgia. That elevation keeps Blairsville colder than the lower parts of the state. The town averages about 56 inches of rain a year and about 4 inches of snow. On a few winter days the high never gets above freezing.

Water is what breaks pavement in the mountains. Rain running down a steep drive cuts at the edges and washes out the stone beneath them. Water that gets into a crack freezes on a cold night, swells and pries the crack wider.

So the work starts before any asphalt shows up. We grade the site so water runs off to the sides, and we set pipe where water crosses the drive. The stone base goes down in layers and is compacted before our paver lays the hot mix.

Long valley drives and steep cabin driveways around Blairsville

The Chattahoochee National Forest covers nearly two-thirds of Union County. Vogel State Park sits about eleven miles south of town on US-19 and US-129. That land is public, so homes sit on private ground in the valleys and up the slopes. Out toward Choestoe, Ivy Log or Suches, a drive can run a long way from the road to the house.

A farm drive between pasture fences and a steep drive up to a cabin need different work. The farm drive needs a solid base and a crown so it sheds water. The steep drive needs water turned off it before it gains speed, and a base that holds on the grade.

We have paved gravel drives of 1,000 feet and more. A steep mountain driveway about 1,200 feet long took us two days. Paving a gravel drive means no more mud, no more dust.

Homes near Lake Nottely can call for parking pads, turnarounds and drives that drop toward the water. Small commercial lots near the town square and the highways need parking lot paving that drains well and carries trucks. For a business that stays open, we plan the work in phases with you.

County roads, private roads and tar and chip in Union County

Union County's Road Department maintains the county roads. It lists three kinds of road surface in the county: gravel, surface treated (tar and gravel) and asphalt pavement. So a new paved drive in Union County may meet gravel, tar and chip or hot mix at the road.

Road paving around Blairsville covers private roads, farm lanes and shared drives that serve several homes. A private road stays private after it is paved. Union County has a Right-of-Way Specialist who helps owners petition to have a road deeded to the county for maintenance. If that is the plan, ask the county what it requires first.

Tar and chip is worth pricing on a long, low traffic lane. Georgia DOT calls it surface treatment and lists it with hot mix for low volume roads, like subdivision streets. It cannot fix a road that is out of shape, so rough sections get base work first. It gives a long lane the look of a country road with a hard surface.

Who controls the driveway connection in Blairsville?

It depends on who owns the road your drive meets. The city itself covers only about 1.1 square miles and had 616 people at the 2020 census. Check which side of the city limits your property is on. Inside them, ask the City of Blairsville before the work starts.

Off a county road, the Union County Road Department maintains the road. The county's building permit page says a build may also need a culvert permit or an approved DOT driveway permit. Ask the county what applies to your job before any work begins.

If your drive ties into a state route such as GA-515, Georgia DOT's driveway rules apply. Its regulations require a permit before any construction work in the state highway right-of-way. Residential driveway applications go to the GDOT district area office. We build to whichever one owns the road, and you can ask us about it when we write the estimate.