Northside · Cragmont · La Loma Park · Thousand Oaks · Berkeley Hills
Schedule a Discovery ConsultationBerkeley homeowners tend to care about the house first. Many live in a Maybeck-era shingle, a 1920s stucco rebuild or a hillside home stepped down a canyon. The yard should match that level of thought.
We design and build outdoor living spaces for homeowners in Berkeley, from the flats near Solano Avenue up to the streets around Grizzly Peak. We plan every detail with you before construction starts.
Our Signature Process keeps it clear: a Discovery Consultation at your home, Professional Design and Planning, Proposal and Project Alignment, then Build and Reveal.
The Campanile at sunset, with Mount Tamalpais beyond. Photo: Tristan Harward, CC BY-SA 2.5
You can hear the Campanile's bells from a lot of Berkeley backyards. The tower's carillon has 61 bells, and they toll the hour from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. It is a good reminder that this is a town built around a campus, with neighbors who walk, garden and argue about plants.
Up on Euclid Avenue, the Berkeley Rose Garden has been open since 1937. Its terraced amphitheater looks out to the Golden Gate, and more than 100 rose varieties peak in mid-May. Across Euclid, a pedestrian tunnel leads to Codornices Park. Plenty of our clients want a little of that feeling at home: terraces, a view and something blooming.
In 1898, Northside residents founded the Hillside Club, inspired by Bernard Maybeck's ideas about building with the land instead of bulldozing it. Members included Maybeck and John Galen Howard. Their brown-shingle homes with steep roofs follow the contours of the hill.
On September 17, 1923, a fire that started in Wildcat Canyon swept through the neighborhoods north of campus and destroyed about 600 buildings. Many shingle homes were replaced with Period Revival houses in stucco and tile. In 1991 the Tunnel Fire also reached the southern Berkeley hills.
The Hillside Club's idea still holds up. We shape yards to the slope instead of fighting it.
Flatland lots near Thousand Oaks usually call for one well-planned patio and garden. Hills lots usually start with walls, steps and drainage. Either way, we build in phases that make sense for the site, and you can see finished work on our projects page.
Answer five quick questions and see the features and projects built for the way you live.
Fire zones. Berkeley lists the area just west of Grizzly Peak Boulevard as a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, and the Grizzly Peak and Panoramic areas as mitigation areas with the strictest rules. There, the city requires an ember-resistant zone within five feet of structures, using gravel, pavers or concrete instead of bark or mulch. Wooden gates and fences attached to or within five feet of the home must come out in those areas. We confirm current rules with the city during planning.
Landslides. Rain-triggered slides are a known issue in the Berkeley Hills, and two large slow-moving slides sit just north of the Rose Garden and John Hinkel Park. Controlling water is the first line of defense. On hillside sites we often recommend a geotechnical engineer.
Clay soil. Much of the Bay Area sits on expansive clay that swells when wet and shrinks when dry. We slope patios and walks away from the house and keep planters off older foundations.
Permits. Walls, structures and grading may need City of Berkeley permits, and major improvements in the highest-risk areas must use fire-resistant materials.
Northside is often called the birthplace of the First Bay Region Tradition, with work by Maybeck, Julia Morgan and Ernest Coxhead. Homes like these look wrong next to glossy, big-box hardscape.
For historic Berkeley homes we lean on natural stone, stone retaining walls, timber and plantings that soften the edges. New work should feel like it could have been there for decades, while the drainage and footings underneath meet today's standards.
Every project begins with a discovery consultation. We learn about your home, your goals and how you want to live outside, then recommend the right next step.
Schedule a Discovery ConsultationYes. We pick materials and proportions that suit the house, from stone and timber for shingle homes to tile and stucco details for Period Revival homes.
Expect stricter rules near the house, including a five-foot ember-resistant zone in the mitigation areas. We plan hardscape and planting around those rules.
Rarely. Most steep Berkeley lots can hold one or more level terraces with the right retaining walls.
Usually. We design around mature trees and keep heavy work out of root zones where we can.
Often. Natives and low-water plants suit Berkeley's climate, and lean planting near the house helps in fire zones.
Take the design quiz or book a consultation and we will walk the site with you.
