Detention and retention pond construction that controls stormwater and meets site requirements.
Detention ponds in Buda work hard. Most of the basins we see sit below subdivisions that went from pasture to rooftops in a short stretch of years, and the pond was sized for a watershed that is still filling in with new streets and driveways. That means the engineer's original numbers get tested earlier than anyone expected, and the basin shows wear faster than it would in an older, built-out area.
The ground here does not help. Hays County's rocky clay and shallow caliche shed water fast off hard surfaces but let it go slow once it reaches the pond, so a storm that moves through in an hour can leave a basin holding water for days. We routinely find silted-in forebays near newer phases of Whispering Hollow and Sunfield, bare or eroding slopes where turf never established on compacted fill, and outlet structures choked with sediment or brush. Volunteer trees on an embankment are common too, and left alone their roots work against the compaction that keeps a dam section stable.
Working with Corral Bros on a Buda detention pond starts with a straightforward site walk, not a sales pitch. We tell you what we see in the basin, what it needs now, and what can wait a season. From there we handle the excavation, grading, outlet work, and slope stabilization ourselves, scheduled around your tenants, residents, or board meetings, so the person who signs off on the work gets a basin that performs the way it was designed to, built or restored to the plan.
We're a local, family-built company that treats your Buda property like our own, tidy crews, clear pricing, and detention ponds that holds up to Hays County conditions. Available as a one-time project or part of an ongoing plan.
A detention pond temporarily holds stormwater runoff and releases it slowly, so a developed site doesn't flood downstream neighbors or overwhelm storm drains. Most Central Texas commercial sites, subdivisions and larger developments are required to have detention as part of their drainage permit.
A detention pond drains down to empty between storms and is dry most of the time, while a retention pond holds a permanent pool of water. We build and maintain both, choosing the right one based on your site's soils, drainage requirements and available space.
We schedule a free on-site visit, usually within 48 hours of your call, and walk the basin with whoever manages the property, whether that is a board member, a community association manager, or a GC closing out the site. We look at the inlet, the forebay, the outlet structure, and the slopes, then put together a scope based on what the basin actually needs, not a generic package.
Most basins in newer Buda developments need attention every few years, sooner if the property sits downstream of a lot of new rooftop and pavement. Sediment builds up fastest in the first several years after a subdivision finishes build-out, since cleared lots and new streets wash a lot of fine soil into the pond before the landscaping upstream fully establishes.
We phase the work and stage equipment away from parking rows and building entrances, and we coordinate timing with property management so residents and tenants are not blocked in during excavation or hauling. Most pond work happens in and around the basin footprint itself, which keeps us out of drive aisles and common areas most of the day.
Hays County's rocky clay and shallow caliche do not drain quickly, so a basin here tends to hold water longer after a storm than the same pond would in sandier soil, and slow drawdown is one of the most common complaints we hear. Add in Hill Country downpours that arrive fast and hard, and undersized or silted outlet structures get overwhelmed, which is often when boards notice standing water that will not go down.
Access and the amount of material that has to come out usually drive the cost more than anything else. A pond with a silted-in forebay, a failed outlet structure, or embankments that have grown over with volunteer trees takes more equipment time than routine mowing and inlet clearing, and a basin that is hard to reach with equipment because of fencing, retaining walls, or tight site lines adds time too.
Free, no-pressure estimate from a local crew. Call (737) 404-9343 or request a quote online.
