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Treehouse Transplant
When Todd and Amy Brown purchased a home in Atlanta, they expected to plant roots and grow their family in the South. When a job opportunity took Todd and his family to Chicago, however, his three young daughters grew to know the Midwest as home. After more than three years in the Windy City, Todd's job once again had the family packing their bags, this time back to Atlanta and their former home, which the Browns still owned. With active school schedules and social lives, the girls were hesitant to move again, and were only convinced when Todd promised to build them a treehouse and zip line in the backyard. Unfortunately, their dad wasn't quite a professional when it came to building the much-anticipated tree house. His first attempt fell flat – literally – when several storms hit the area. To fulfill his promise, Todd sought out professional help. "I knew I couldn't do this project alone," he said. "Luckily, a new home improvement show was filming in the area and looking for projects to feature."
Finding Elbow Room Todd responded to an online posting seeking families with remodeling projects for a new HGTV show called Elbow Room. The show features expert craftsman Chip Wade coming to the rescue of families who love where they live, but whose houses no longer suit them. In addition to the treehouse and zip line, Todd and Amy wanted to create a space that the whole family could enjoy. Embarking on this project, Chip enlisted the help of local contractors Sugar Hill Outdoors. The first step was to decide how the new outdoor living space and treehouse would be laid out in relation to the house. Prior to construction, the outdoor space consisted only of a deck off of the second level, overlooking a backyard with substantial grade changes, trees and overgrown ivy. "We agreed that the best course of action would be to design a long walkway with steps to lead from the bottom of the deck's stairs down to what would become a large patio at the base of the treehouse," said Clint Tucker, manager of Sugar Hill Outdoors.
With a wide variety of outdoor renovations under his belt, Chip specified Belgard Hardscapes pavers to create the perfect patio for Todd and Amy's lifestyle. The Browns wanted the new patio to accommodate both intimate evenings and large get-togethers. "To create a centerpiece to the large space, Chip's design included a paver fire pit," said Ken O'Neill, vice president of marketing for Belgard Hardscapes. "The fire pit not only looks beautiful, but extends the outdoor season and allows the Browns to enjoy the outdoors well into the evening."
Installation Due to the hilly landscape of the backyard, a retaining wall was designed using Weston Wall in a Saddle Creek color blend to separate the downward slope from the flat patio area. The wall served double duty as a seating wall to accommodate large get-togethers. After selecting Lafitt pavers in both Brasstown and Belgian Stone color blends for the patio and walkways, Bergerac pavers in the Carriage House blend for the fire feature and Weston Wall block in a Saddle Creek blend, it was time to get to work. After about three weeks of work, the Browns' new outdoor retreat was finished. The girls' new two-story treehouse came complete with a trampoline station, tire swing, zip line, rope ladder and more. Todd and Amy also got the outdoor space of their dreams, with a patio perfect for relaxing and watching the girls play. "We couldn't be more excited about our new outdoor living space, and neither could our girls," Todd said. "They will definitely be putting the treehouse and zip line to good use, and you can bet that there will be many evenings spent around the fire pit roasting marshmallows!" A clip from the Elbow Room episode featuring this project can be seen at: www.hgtv.com/video/the-worlds-best-treehouse-video/index.html.
Francisco Uviña, University of New Mexico
Hardscape Oasis in Litchfield Park
Ash Nochian, Ph.D. Landscape Architect
November 12th, 2025
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