Parking Lot Condition Assessment in Happy Valley, Oregon

Quick Verdict

A parking lot condition assessment in Happy Valley is a structured inspection that scores your pavement, maps the failures, and turns a rough-looking lot into a ranked, budgeted repair plan. It documents cracking, potholes, drainage, striping, and ADA issues, then assigns a condition score so you fund repairs in priority order. In Happy Valley, where much of the commercial pavement is newer and built on hilly Clackamas County terrain, drainage and slope are central to the inspection — concentrated hillside runoff is what fails lots here. This guide explains what the assessment covers, how to read the report, and how local conditions shape the findings.

What the Assessment Measures

A real pavement inspection for Happy Valley commercial property looks at both the surface and the structure, then documents it so the report holds up for budgeting and for comparing bids.

• Surface distress. Cracking type and severity, potholes, raveling, rutting, and depressions, measured and mapped.
• Drainage. Where water concentrates on a slope, whether inlets and channels are clear, and whether runoff is undermining the pavement.
• Striping and markings. Faded stalls, worn fire lanes, and arrows that no longer read clearly.
• ADA compliance. Accessible stall count, slopes, access aisles, and signage — and on hilly sites, running and cross slopes get extra scrutiny.
• Structural clues. Alligator cracking, pumping, and edge failure that point to a failing base.

The output is a condition score plus a distress map. The scoring framework comes from our commercial parking lot maintenance plan pillar, which shows how the numbers drive a budget.

Why Happy Valley Conditions Change the Findings

Happy Valley's terrain is the defining factor. Built across the hills of southeast Clackamas County near Mount Talbert and Scouters Mountain, much of its commercial pavement sits on slopes. An assessment here spends more time on drainage than a flat-lot inspection would: where does winter runoff go, are the inlets and channels clear, and is concentrated water getting under the asphalt at the bottom of a grade? Sloped lots also raise ADA questions, because running and cross slopes in accessible parking and routes must stay within limits.

The other factor is age. Happy Valley's fast growth means many lots are relatively new, so an assessment is often about catching the first cracks and confirming drainage works while the lot is still in great shape — and possibly under warranty. The sub-grade across the area is clay, which holds water and moves seasonally, so the inspection still checks the low spots and edges where clay-driven failure begins.

Reading the Assessment Report

A useful report ranks problems so you know what to fund first.

Priority	What it means	Typical action
Safety / liability	Trip hazards, ADA slope gaps, failed fire lane	Fix now
Active failure	Potholes, alligator areas, undermined drainage	Repair this season
Preventive	Sound surface, aging seal, hairline cracks	Seal and crack-fill on schedule
Monitor	Minor wear, good drainage	Re-inspect next year

If your report is just a price to repave, it is a sales pitch, not an assessment. A proper inspection lets you defer what can wait and act on what cannot — and on a newer hillside lot, it usually points to drainage upkeep and early crack sealing rather than major work. Pair it with a Happy Valley maintenance plan so the findings turn into scheduled action.

How Often to Assess a Happy Valley Lot

Most Happy Valley commercial and HOA lots benefit from a formal assessment every two to three years, with a quick visual check each spring after the wet season. On sloped lots, an extra fall look at drainage before the heavy rains is worthwhile. High-traffic retail and any lot already showing alligator cracking should be assessed annually so failures are caught before they spread.

What an Assessment Costs

Assessment pricing depends on lot size, slope and drainage complexity, and whether you need a full distress map or a walk-and-rank summary.

Industry Baseline Range: a professional condition assessment for a typical Happy Valley commercial lot runs in the range of $300 to $1,200+, with larger or steeply sloped multi-building sites costing more to document fully. These are industry baseline ranges for planning only — actual pricing depends on lot size, access, condition, and current market conditions. Get a site-specific quote.

Current Market Reality

Many reputable contractors credit or waive the assessment fee when you award them the work. In the Portland metro, timing is the bigger lever: the short Oregon season fills crew calendars fast, so a late-winter assessment lets you schedule repairs before the season books out. On sloped lots especially, catching a drainage problem early is far cheaper than repairing the base it would have undermined.

Turn the Assessment Into a Plan

The assessment is the starting point; the value is acting on it in priority order. Cojo provides asphalt maintenance services across Happy Valley and the Portland metro, and our reports are written to be used, not filed. For the local picture, see our guide to commercial maintenance in Happy Valley. Request an assessment and we will score your lot before you spend on anything.