Miller's Overcomes Site Access to Create an Outdoor Oasis

Text and photos by Miller's Landscape & Lawn Care

Rick and Mary Simon live on a bluff with an incredible view of the Missouri River Valley. Their precipitous backyard, however, made it useless and even dangerous for entertaining, and they wanted to make accommodations for a summer wedding reception.

before

after Click here for slideshow.

Mary, an interior designer, provided the color palette. Miller’s Landscape & Lawn Care senior landscape architect George Hayes was hired to create the plan and tackle the project.

Hayes’ master landscape plan called for terraces with landscaping and decks on three levels, retaining walls, expansion of a small backdoor patio into an outdoor living space complete with a bar island and fire pit and a spectacular water feature down the 3:1 slope to bring it all together. The biggest problems on the site were access and material staging during construction; the only way to get to the Simon’s yard was through their neighbors’ yards.

The plan took longer than normal to execute because of the need to work around the schedules of three separate households, get materials over the neighbor’s 12-foot wall, build conveyors to get materials into the Simon’s yard and remove existing landscapes in the next-door staging areas to prevent damage. A small army of laborers and sub-contractors performed an incredible choreography, dovetailing projects to ensure the least possible amount of downtime.

The first phase was terracing. The second included the paver patios and outdoor living space features. Once completed, work on the pondless water feature began.

The three-tier water feature includes a 30-inch waterfall, a 16-foot streambed with smaller waterfalls followed by another 30-inch waterfall, another 16-foot streambed and a 5-foot waterfall culminating in a large boulder basin specially designed to contain splash.

Stepping stones across the stream allow access to both sides of the yard. Once the boulders and river rock were installed, the finishing touch was night lighting. Decking and landscaping completed the picture and totally changed the ambience.

The crew completed this outdoor oasis on time and under budget, much to the Simon’s delight. The Simons now regularly entertain and enjoy the peaceful serenity of the gurgling waterfalls, as do neighbors who can hear the sounds of falling water from their own back yards.

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Miller's Overcomes Site Access to Create an Outdoor Oasis

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