I finally saw that new park in Springfield and the curb detail is wild

I was walking through the new Riverside Park in Springfield last week and the concrete work on the main walkway really caught my eye. The finishers did a continuous, smooth radius on all the curb edges where it meets the sidewalk, and it must be a mile long. It looks amazing, but I can't figure out how they kept the formwork so consistent for that length without any joints showing. What's the best way to pull off a long, curved edge like that without it getting wavy?

3 comments

3 Comments

sageadams1mo ago

That's some serious skill, I've never seen a radius that long without a single wobble.

jones.nancy1mo ago

Yeah, that kind of precision is way beyond my pay grade. I tried to put a smooth edge on a small garden bed once and it looked like a toddler drew it with their eyes closed. @sageadams is right, that's serious skill. They must have used a long guide rail or something you can slide the forms along, because freehanding that would be a nightmare.

joelt701mo ago

Sageadams is right about the guide rail, but the real trick is the crew. They probably used a long aluminum straightedge pinned to the ground, running a hand trowel along it for the whole pass. Any wobble comes from uneven pressure or a bad anchor point. For a mile of curb, they'd have to move and re-set that rail perfectly every few feet. That's a lot of checking with a laser level. One guy rushing and you get a wave.