Oakland Glen Park Project
We recently completed a large project in the Glen Park Neighborhood of Oakland. This site has a significant slope, so terracing and drainage were key components. The couple also had a newborn baby, so the whole landscape was design as a place for a child to climb and discover. They were concerned about water use and upkeep, and wanted the space to feel like an extension of the house.
We designed a terracing system that included a fire pit dug into the hillside to protect from the evening winds and raised beds on the upper terraces for fruits and veggies. Almost all the materials were salvaged either from local demolition lots or salvage yards. We used massive Douglas Fir timbers from a gymnasium in Turlock for the upper terraces and raised beds. The timbers were 7″ x 13″ and 17 ft long, perfect for a gentle 1 fit terrace and wide enough to also function as a bench. The lower terrace along the no-mow native grass lawn are made from recycled granite curbs from the streets of San Francisco.
The rainwater runoff is channeled through the landscape through french drains into a rainwater garden along the side of the property. The landscape qualified for low water use rebates from the county and state which offset the expense of the turf.
The turf is from Delta Bluegrass, it is their no-mow, drought-tolerant native grass sod and is perfect for the San Francisco climate. It need only occasional watering in the summer to stay vibrant year round and requires no mowing, adopting a lovely meadow look.
The benches in the fire pit area are made from old-growth redwood from a salvaged 100 year-old water tank from the Santa Cruz Mountains. We make an effort to build a story into each landscape we create. And we strive to reduce to as close to zero as possible, the net materials that go to the landfill with each project. Creative reuse is our specialty, and it makes each project completely unique.
One of the other main retaining elements are reclaimed granite curbs. These 5 foot long blocks of granite served as sidewalk curbs in San Francisco for 70 years. The were cut from the Sierra Nevada mountains and brought down to The City through the delta. We found the granite curbs in a demolition yard in SF. These curbs are being pulled from the city streets with each new building permit issued. Most are ending up in the landfill. We were thrilled to be able to use them, but I could not help wondering if I had ever gotten a ticket parked in that red zone…
You may ask, how does one move a massive granite block into position in a landscape? Each curb weighed about 750 lbs. To position them in the landscape, we first built a tripod from completely recycled parts, then, using a breaker bar and a little skill, slowly pushed them into place…
Once in place, we built up a planted bed behind, and installed a native no-mow drought-tolerant lawn below…
