Laurel Canyon

Laurel Canyon Terraces

Laurel Canyon is a very picturesque area of homes just outside of the Beverly Hills/Hollywood area.

   It is also very steep in many areas. Driving through it I noticed that one homeowner many decades ago had built a series of terraces made from broken concrete on the steep canyon walls below his house.
   The terraces seem to have held well through all of these years and now support an abundance of trees, such so that the terraces are now almost hidden.
   I am impressed with the engineering of the terraces, they are some five feet high or more, and built on a very steep slope. I’d recommend against this type of shoring for this particular project. I’d worry the slope might be too unstable to support the added weight of the many tons of concrete.
   But I’d say the terraces have been in that spot for a good forty years. So, so far it has weathered time and the elements well.