Front and Back Yard Landscaping in Minneapolis MN

Above and Beyond Curb Appeal

This homeowner loves to entertain. With an eye toward creating spaces for family gatherings and entertaining, Southview created a landscape design for an entire renovation – from front entry, to side yard steps and deck, to backyard patios. The project is a winner of the 2015 NALP Merit Award and a 2016 MNLA Landscape Design Award.

A DIY project gone wrong, the front entry and steps were not only dangerous but didn’t fit the home. Driveway was cracked, unsightly asphalt, and not wide enough. Front of the house was flat, dull, and dangerous.

At the top of the homeowner’s wish list: Give the front of the home major curb appeal. To do that a new, wider driveway, a renovated front entry, an arbor in front of the garage, colorful window boxes, and new gardens were added in phases.

Driveway: Belgard Urbana pavers

Stone Steps: Side yard access required stone steps and flagstone (also Fond du Lac) with organic outcroppings. Columns and pergola add dimension and architectural interest to the home's facade.

Front Entry/steps: Phase one included new steps (colored concrete) and easier access to the front door with two landings on the approach.

Front Retaining Walls: Fond du Lac stone; matched existing walls on the right side of the driveway.

Upgraded Entry: A covered front entry with fiberglass columns, a new front door, and new aluminum railings was added during Phase 2.

Back yard had no entertaining space – just a large expanse of lawn. Award-winning design features three primary spaces: the hot tub and water feature, a dining patio, and a fire pit. As in front, the primary hardscape materials are New York Bluestone and colored concrete.

Water feature: Simple fountain with New York Bluestone caps; underwater lighting. A charming little water feature, lit from below, gurgles quietly by the back window. Pergola & Arbor: Fiberglass columns, Cedar timbers, and wood beam rafters.

An outdoor shower just before jumping in the hot tub or rinsing hands and feet after gardening.

Shower: Fond du Lac outcropping with custom plumbing fixtures and frost footings using steel rebar.

Patio is New York Bluestone with colored concrete border and a Fond Du Lac stacked stone fire pit. Audio speakers "planted" in the beds nearby bring music to the outdoors.

The homeowner’s close family friend lives next door. During phase two, a garden path connecting the two yards was added.

Mailbox: Fond du Lac outcropping with custom detail; drilled mailbox opening; column top cut off and raised up on a metal plate; LED lighting inside the column shines on the underside of the upper piece - making it a piece of art.

In the News! This project was featured in Lake Minnetonka Magazine, August 2016.