I've helped do some concrete work before but it's been years since I've done any.

I have this small patch of dirt in the front of our house that I want to fill.

I want to have the surface have an angle down, away from the foundation so water won't pool near the house and will drain way.

How deep should I make the area to be filled. Is gravel a good idea as the substrate? My friend has a hand compactor tool I can borrow.

Can I make a cross section Control Joint? Just one horizontal and vertical line?

The area is about maybe 4'W X 5'L

The first picture is the area I'm talking about, but in the second picture, the surrounding pathway has also cracked and caved in a bit. I also want to remove and repair those. Should I have a seem that divides the two sections?

**Note - I'll be removing those rocks that line the edge of the area.

 

Got a real mess there.
That walkway was done wrong, most likely it was not properly prepped that's why it's cracking and sagging.
Seeing all the miss matched concrete tells be this has been an ongoing issue.
Add that concrete against's the stucco and it going to start to fail.
Wish we could see the big picture of the whole lay out.
Adding gutters with drains ran under ground to daylight may help.

 

All that concrete is very old and probably done by my grandfather, or a friend that didn't prep it well.

If I break out those 4 square sections near the house, level the soil, add some gravel, compact and repour - should it be alright?

What about the section I want to fill in? - in the first picture.

 

I would do the walkway repair first. This will give reference for the proper slope and elevation of the fill-in area.

 

What is the best way to break up and remove the old concrete?

 

You'll need to either rent a jack hammer or use a sledge hammer .... don't forget the bengay

 

Does it seem like something I'd need a permit for?

 

Depends on on your locale, some give a lot of leeway while others want a permit for most everything
I once lived where they required a permit to put in a vegetable garden

The only way to know for sure is to call the permit office.