As with many residential projects, the designers had to work with clients who could not easily read plans or understand detail sections and elevations. SDG wanted to make sure their clients and contractors understood what was being proposed for their landscape, so they developed 3-D computer models of the front and back yards; they also provided 3-D computer renderings with finished textures and colors of specific details for key elements like the cook center gazebo and the floating spa.

The overall design philosophy on this project was to help develop an estate which would "make the clients ecstatic and fulfill their dreams." The clients wanted to feel like they were living at a Mediterranean resort hotel; entertaining and the use of water features were very important to them. SDG Principal Michelle Martin explains, "With this in mind, we developed an estate setting which captured the natural beauty of their site, emphasized the panoramic views, and created dramatic water features as focal points."

The client's dream estate included a Mediterranean style house. In response, the Landscape Architects developed a grand, formal entry stairway /water feature in the front yard which ascends up 13 feet of grade change to the front door of the house. A complex intermixing of water steps, jets, waterfalls and pools-- the water feature flows along both sides and under the entry stairs. In the middle of the stairway, a landing provides a viewing platform for the lower fountain, the front yard and the panoramic views of the river. The formal entry water feature is separated from the man-made, natural-looking waterfalls and pond by a false wood bridge at the driveway; the bridge lets one believe that the two separate bodies of water are one. Upon crossing the bridge, one experiences a quick transition from the formal Mediterranean style to the informal native oak trees and surroundings. This water feature and stairways are made with stucco walls and concrete balustrades to match the building, colored concrete steps, and highlighted with concrete medallions and friezes by Pineapple Grove and concrete pots by Dura Art Stone. The water stairs are tiled with a light colored, natural tumbled stone tile, and the water weirs under the stairways were created by Custom Cascades.

Whereas the front yard was designed as a grand entry, the back yard was primarily designed for entertaining. Here, the clients wanted to be able to have parties which could easily handle 150 to 200 people. One challenge for the Landscape Architects was to keep the landscape structures grand enough to be in scale with the 15,000 square foot house. The back yard is highlighted by a 50-foot negative edge swimming pool, in which the pool water seems to spill into Folsom Lake beyond the horizon. The pool features two circular water slides that cascade down five feet to the lower pool; a telescoping water jet at the center of the pool; a "floating" spa with a semi-circular metal lattice arbor at one pool end; a roofed gazebo with stucco columns; and a built-in cook center at the other end. The spa backdrop wall incorporates the water weirs which spill water behind the spa into the swimming pool. In addition, the roofed gazebo and cook center unit was designed to reflect the building's Mediterranean-style architecture, and includes a gas barbecue, refrigerator, prep counter space, ceiling fan, and restrooms on the back side.

As for the estate's landscape perimeters, the walls and pilasters are constructed with concrete block, rebar and concrete footings with stucco finish to match the building's Mediterranean flavor. Most walls and pilasters are accented with a decorative cap. Adoquin Stone and Pineapple Grove concrete friezes highlight the focal points on the water feature and entry pilasters. The water feature pilasters are also highlighted with Dura Art Stone decorative concrete pots. The perimeter fencing and driveway gates are custom made wrought iron fencing painted black with stucco pilasters.

The majority of the hardscape on this site consists of poured-in-place concrete; multiple types of finishes create richness and accent throughout the design. The driveway entry and exit have a Bomacron Ashlar Slate colored stamped concrete pattern, while the driveways have an exposed aggregate field with smooth troweled bands. The stairs at the entry / water feature and the pool deck are colored concrete (L.M. Scofield C-12 Mesa Beige color) with salt rock finish field with smooth bands as shown on the plans. Colored concrete with broom finish accentuates the perimeter walkways. The parking area is defined with interlocking pavers set on sand between concrete bands. For accent 12"x12" and 12"x24" Adoquin Stone (natural stone from Mexico) pavers, set on a concrete base, highlight the front door at the top of the steps and in the back yard centered between the house and the pool. All colors were selected to match and highlight the building's colors.

To give the project a Mediterranean planting feel, formal boxwood hedges were incorporated with bold, accent plants in decorative pots set up close to the house. Drought-tolerant and native plants were transitioned around the oak trees. To capture the feel of the rolling foothills, Creeping Red Fescue was included around the perimeter of the site and adjacent to the natural pond to give the feel of blowing grasses on a hillside.

Except for the lights in the swimming pool and cook center gazebo, the site and entry water feature lighting was addressed with low voltage lights. The owner wanted to be able to entertain at any time of the day, so the designers felt it was important to have ample lighting for night time parties. The lighting was designed on a variety of different circuits for ease of only having certain areas lit or the whole site. Up-lights were incorporated to highlight the existing oak trees and wall niche lights to accent walls and stairways. Custom built pilasters with lighted glass block cap illuminate the driveway. Strip lights installed in the nose of each step riser highlight the entry stairway / water feature. The water feature itself glows at night. Throughout the project, walkway lights provide fully-illuminated access to the site at night.

Slopes are controlled with retaining walls, boulders, and erosion control plant material such as Hypericum and Creeping Red Fescue. Numerous walls define the driveway and parking spaces. Instead of doing major re-grading of the site and removing existing oak trees, the site was terraced with retaining walls to provide usable spaces. Concrete block walls with stucco finish along the driveway match the architecture.

In the planted areas, tan colored, stacked block walls with boulders set into the walls control the slopes and protect the oak trees. Importing and installing these boulders was a challenge for the landscape contractor, Rick Myers of Myers Landscaping. The boulders had to be placed using a crane which had to maneuver the rocks up a steep hillside as well as around and through large, mature oak trees.

Primarily designed for maintenance ease, the irrigation system is simple and practically self-sufficient. The majority of the site is irrigated with Rain Bird spray heads and rotors. Bubblers are used along the hedge rows, while drip irrigation is limited to the perimeter areas where the ground cover is not from flats or hydroseed. Also, all of the pots have drip irrigation and a drainage system. With this site being on a slope, the irrigation valves are circuited to separate high and low areas, and north/east areas from south /west areas. All heads have check valves for low head drainage.

The key environmental concern addressed by the Landscape Architects was oak tree preservation. The designers located the house to preserve 14 of the 15 mature oak trees on the site and minimize cut and fill. In some cases, the large trees near the house had to have stacked block retaining walls built around them to keep the fill off their trunks. Where fill was placed over the existing oak roots, an aeration system was installed. No plants were planted within 8 feet of the tree trunks and only drought tolerant plants were installed under the drip line of the native oaks.

Great care was also taken to limit the amount of trenching and compaction under the oak tree's drip line; an arborist was recommended to review the health of the trees prior to and during the landscape construction phase.