Town of Okotoks

Okotoks Excavation in the Sheep River Valley

The Sheep River valley divides Okotoks from north to south, and it has shaped the town's growth as much as its ground. Okotoks held a 30,000-person population cap, set in 1998 because of water-supply limits from the Sheep River, until a 2012 vote ended it, and the Town has annexed about 1,950 ha (4,900 acres) from Foothills County. We excavate for new homes, established lots and drainage work across Okotoks, about 46 km by road south of our downtown Calgary office.

A small town spreading up both sides of a tree-lined river valley, with a pathway and bridge crossing the river.

At a Glance

Municipality: Town of Okotoks
From our downtown office: About 40 minutes south of downtown
Typical servicing: Municipal water and sewer; confirm on annexed parcels
Postal prefixes: T1S

(825) 475-5548

Lots, Homes and Sites in Okotoks

The cap and its end explain what is being built. The 2021 federal census, the Town's official figure, put Okotoks at 30,405 people, just past the old limit. With the cap gone and 1,950 ha added from Foothills County, the Town's planning documents name areas such as Drake Landing, D'Arcy, Mountainview at Sandstone, Wedderburn, Ridgemont, Thunder Stone Junction and Tillotson. Where lots in areas like these are still being built, the work is new-construction excavation: topsoil stripped and stockpiled, basements dug to staked elevations, service trenches to the Town's specifications, and backfill and rough grading to the approved plans.

Established homes bring the other half of the work. A detached garage needs a pad dug and compacted; an older foundation may need weeping tile replaced or settled backfill rebuilt; a failing sewer or water service needs a trench from the house to the connection; and a teardown needs the house, foundation and footings removed so a new build can start clean. Before any demolition, the OHS Code requires materials that could release asbestos fibres to be removed first, so a hazardous materials assessment and qualified abatement come before our machine, and the service disconnections are arranged with the utilities. On built-up streets these jobs are done with compact equipment and the spoil hauled away.

Okotoks is well connected for trucking: Highway 2A, Highway 7, Highway 549 and Highway 783 are all mapped at the town. Gravel, pipe bedding, backfill and export loads can move on those routes rather than on long runs through residential streets. Permits and servicing inside the town boundary are the Town's, not Foothills County's, and that includes land the Town annexed, so a parcel that used to be county acreage follows Town rules once it is inside the boundary, even if an old well or septic system is still on it.

Ground, Water and Frost

The Town describes the Sheep River valley as a wildlife corridor dividing Okotoks from north to south. For excavation the valley matters in three ways. Lots near its edge can involve slopes that need cut-and-fill planning and, where the grade is significant, a geotechnical engineer's design for any wall or regrading. Runoff from a stripped site heads downhill toward the corridor, so the sediment barrier goes in, stockpiles are sited away from the slope and a replanting plan is agreed before the topsoil comes off. And any work near the natural area itself should be checked with the Town first; we do not assume setbacks or permissions near the river that the Town has not confirmed.

The Sheep River also limited the town's water supply, which was the reason for the 1998 cap, and that history is a fair reminder that water here is managed carefully. For a dig, though, the governing rules are provincial. The code's 1.2 m minimum applies to a heated basement's footings on clay, the hole has to stay unfrozen and dry until concrete is placed, walls beyond 1.5 m of depth are sloped or shored, and the spoil pile keeps a 1 m gap from the edge. Okotoks has no verified groundwater depth for any neighbourhood, so each lot's geotechnical work decides whether it needs pumping or free-draining backfill.

Neighbourhood Notes

Drake Landing

Named in the Town's planning documents. On new-home lots, basement digs follow the builder's staked elevations and the approved grading plan, with topsoil stockpiled on site for the finish grade.

D'Arcy and Wedderburn

Also named in the Town's planning documents. Service trenches here are dug to the Town's requirements and left open for inspection, then bedded and backfilled in compacted lifts.

Mountainview at Sandstone and Ridgemont

Where homes are going up, backfill against new foundation walls waits until the walls are braced and damp-proofing and weeping tile are checked, then goes in with the grade falling away from the house.

Thunder Stone Junction and Tillotson

On active building streets, export trucks are loaded clean, and mud tracked onto Town roads is cleared the same day so the street stays usable for neighbours and other trades.

Cimarron, Eaglecrest at Westmount and The Hill at Westridge

On the Town's developer list. For weeping tile repairs or settled backfill on finished homes, we dig to the footing along the problem wall, then rebuild and regrade.

The Sheep River valley edge

The Town's wildlife corridor runs north to south through Okotoks. On lots near its edge, erosion control and slope checks come first, and work close to the corridor waits for the Town's confirmation.

Annexed land

About 1,950 ha came into the town from Foothills County. If a former county parcel still has an old well line or septic system, it is customer-owned, so it is located privately and decommissioned by the right trade before we dig nearby.

Permits and Locates in Okotoks

Authority having jurisdiction: Town of Okotoks

The Town of Okotoks states that a building permit is required for most forms of development within the Town, so a basement, garage, teardown or new service is confirmed with the Town's building services first. Land the Town annexed from Foothills County now falls under the Town's permits. Our locate request to Utility Safety Partners goes in a minimum of three full working days early, with a margin for the building season, and marks older than 30 calendar days, or past the date on the report, are renewed. Inside the strip a metre wide on either side of a mark, digging is by hand or hydrovac only until the line is visible, and anything the owner installed is found by a private locator.

The Excavation Work Okotoks Calls For Most

Deep Basement Excavation

Full and walkout basement digs for new custom homes on open lots and acreages.

Deep Utility Trenching (Water, Sewer & Storm)

Shored, bedded trenches for water, sanitary and storm service lines.

French Drain & Weeping Tile Excavation

Digs to the footing, new perforated tile in clear stone, and yard French drains.

Residential Building & Garage Demolition

House and garage teardown, foundation removal and a level lot for the next build.

Slope Stabilization & Erosion Control

Runoff diversion, benching, riprap, silt fence and revegetation on slopes and banks.

Foundation Backfilling & Perimeter Grading

Compacted backfill against new foundations and a perimeter grade that sheds water.

Every service we offer

Close to Okotoks

De Winton

A Foothills County hamlet in acreage country on the Highway 552 corridor.

Heritage Pointe

A Foothills County hamlet on Calgary’s south boundary, on piped communal services.

Southeast Calgary

Inglewood and Ramsay infills, the largest industrial belt and newer deep-south suburbs.

Excavation in Okotoks: Questions

Why did Okotoks have a population cap?

The Town created a 30,000-person cap in 1998 because of water-supply limits from the Sheep River, and a 2012 vote ended it. The Town has also annexed about 1,950 ha (4,900 acres) from Foothills County. For anyone building, the practical result is that the Town, not the County, permits and services land inside its current boundary, including annexed land. For excavation, that means confirming the Town's servicing and grading requirements for the lot before a dig is staked, rather than relying on how the land was handled when it was county acreage.

Do I need a permit to dig in Okotoks?

The Town of Okotoks says a building permit is required for most forms of development within the Town, so assume a basement, garage, addition or demolition needs one and confirm with the Town before booking. Work in a Town road or right-of-way and new or replaced service connections are likely to carry their own Town requirements as well. Separately, no Okotoks dig starts without a Utility Safety Partners locate, requested with three or more full working days' notice, and a private locate for anything customer-owned. We do not start a machine until the permit and every locate mark are in place.

Can you work near the Sheep River in Okotoks?

We can, once the Town and any other authority involved have confirmed what is allowed. The Town describes the Sheep River valley as a wildlife corridor, so work close to it is not treated like an ordinary backyard dig. On lots near the valley edge, we plan silt fence and stockpile locations before stripping, keep runoff from carrying sediment downhill, and bring in a geotechnical engineer where a slope, wall or regrading could affect stability. We will not dig in the corridor itself without written confirmation from the Town, and we do not guess at setbacks that have not been published.

Digging in Okotoks?

Call or send the details. Aspen Excavating works from downtown Calgary, and we will look at the site and the access before we price it.

(825) 475-5548 Send the Details