And here's a post with a better view of the step in front of the door to the house. It's a chunk that's almost level with the threshold of the door to the house. At the very beginning of this project, I thought about taking out all the concrete, digging down, laying some gravel and making room for piers and posts and beams like you describe. Then the prospect of taking out all that concrete made me achy and tired. Noooope. Plan B was born, and you're lookin at it.