Landscape design-build in Foster City, California
Landscape Design & Build in Foster City, CA
Foster City is next door to Sequoia Outdoor’s base in San Mateo, and our project records show one completed Foster City construction project, pavers, a cedar fence and beach-pebble borders across a front and back yard, finished in January 2026 and photographed below. We design and build the whole yard as one coordinated project: pavers, walls and steps, decks and pergolas, outdoor kitchens, planting, drainage and lighting.
Foster City lots are flat, and many back onto the lagoon, so the questions are the base under the paving, where the water goes, the stepped fence heights the City sets at the water, and the rules of the homeowners’ association many properties belong to. Foster City is also the rare water district that pays a rebate for artificial turf. Whether you want a focused improvement or a full outdoor living build, the process begins with the site, your priorities and a realistic scope.
Construction projects start at $25,000. Design is quoted separately. Qualifying design fees may be credited toward construction.
Foster City snapshot
Service area
Foster City, Peninsula & South Bay
Completed Foster City construction projects
1, from company project records
Documented Foster City work
1 photographed build; written case study pending
Construction project minimum
$25,000
Review footprint
80 review listings and recommendations across six platforms as of 2026-08-30
One Foster City Build, Photographed on Site
The completed Foster City construction project in our records, photographed after completion, with the completion month and the project size the record gives. It has no written case study yet, so no scope beyond the photographs and no price is quoted for it here; the pricing section below gives what our records show, and the case studies nearby carry published ranges because they have write-ups.
Why there is no Foster City range here. A published range on this site is the sum of a written-up project’s cost rows, rounded from its signed proposal. This project has no write-up yet. Browse every documented Sequoia project.
Three published case studies in San Mateo and Belmont
San Mateo and Belmont are the two cities Foster City borders. Each has its own tree, drainage and permit rules, and each range is the sum of that project’s published cost rows, rounded from its signed proposal: not Foster City pricing and not a quote for another property. See the full case-study library.
San MateoA Cleaner Front Yard With Stronger Edges
A corner-lot front and side yard rebuilt with a curved paver walkway, artificial turf, river-rock borders, drainage, irrigation, path lighting and planting, completed January 2026.
BelmontA Belmont Backyard Built Around a Stone Outdoor Kitchen
A large-format paver patio, an L-shape stacked-stone outdoor kitchen, a wide composite step and segmental walls, completed April 2025.
San MateoLayered Pavers, Walls, Lighting and Planting for a San Mateo Home
Calstone pavers across the driveway, side yard and rear patio, garden walls, drainage, irrigation, path and uplighting, sod and planting, completed November 2024.
Planning a Landscape Around Your Foster City Property
Six things worth settling before materials are chosen. The fence heights and the association rules shape more Foster City designs than the ground does, and the rebates have a sequence that cannot be run backwards.
Flat, filled and close to the water
Foster City is flat bayfront land, so the things that decide how long a patio or driveway lasts are invisible when it is finished: the compacted base under the pavers, the edge restraint, and where the water goes when it rains. Drainage is designed to leave the property through an approved route rather than onto a neighbor or into the lagoon, and a drain line to the gutter is right-of-way work with its own permit. On a waterfront lot the rear yard has its own rules, set out under fences below. Substantial grading, drainage changes, walls or structures may need review or professional input; we design and build landscapes, and where engineering is needed it comes from a licensed professional named in the scope. Building permits.
Forty inches at the front, stepped down at the water
Municipal Code Chapter 17.52 fixes the heights. In a front yard a fence, wall or hedge parallel to the street may be no more than 40 inches; a 6-foot fence is allowed only set back 20 feet or more from the sidewalk and under further conditions. At the side and rear a fence may be 6 feet, or 7 where everything above 6 feet is lattice; walls 6 feet; hedges 12 feet. On a waterfront lot the rear-yard fence steps down toward the water, from 72 inches to 42 inches at the lagoon, in thirds or quarters of the yard depth depending on how deep the yard is. Only a fence over 6 feet and a masonry or concrete wall over 3 feet need a building permit. Chapter 17.52, fences, walls and hedges.
Driveway approaches, sidewalks and drains to the street
Activity within the public right-of-way requires an encroachment permit from the Public Works Department, and for a landscape project that means a new or widened driveway approach, sidewalk or curb work, and a drain line to the gutter. The application goes to the Engineering Division at City Hall, so the permit belongs in the schedule before the driveway does. Encroachment permits.
The rule most Foster City yards answer to first
Many Foster City homes belong to a homeowners’ association, and the City’s own rebate page tells residents in one to check its restrictions before installing synthetic turf. The same applies to fences, hardscape colors, front-yard planting and anything visible from the street or the water. An association’s design approval is not a City permit and a City permit is not an association approval; a Foster City project schedules both, and the association’s comes first because it can change the design. The City’s turf rebate page.
Hetch Hetchy water, and the district that rebates turf
Foster City’s water comes from the Hetch Hetchy system through the Estero Municipal Improvement District, and the Public Works Water Division runs the system, so rebates are claimed as an EMID customer. EMID is unusual: through BAWSCA’s Lawn Be Gone program it pays $4 per square foot of lawn converted to water-efficient planting, with a $300 rain garden option and a Notice to Proceed before the lawn comes out, and through its own Synthetic Turf Rebate it also pays $4 per square foot, up to $5,000 per residential customer, for replacing an existing irrigated, healthy lawn with synthetic turf. The turf rebate needs an on-site pre-installation inspection and City approval before any work starts, an installer’s estimate, and a check of association restrictions; dead grass, dirt, sand, rock and hardscape do not qualify. EMID also rebates smart irrigation controllers, and rain barrels and cisterns are rebated up to $200 combined for San Mateo County residents. Foster City water, Synthetic Turf Rebate, Lawn Be Gone, controller rebate and rain barrel rebates.
eTRAKiT, or the counter by appointment
Foster City requires a building permit for every interior and exterior change except cosmetic ones, submitted through its eTRAKiT portal or in person at City Hall, with over-the-counter permits by appointment on Tuesdays and Thursdays for jobs that qualify. Which permits a landscape project needs depends on the scope: a masonry wall over three feet, a fence over six, a deck or pergola, gas and electrical for an outdoor kitchen and a drainage connection can each involve a different review, and a building-permit exemption does not remove an encroachment permit or an association approval. Confirm the set for your address before construction. Building permits.
Requirements depend on the property and the proposed work, and not every item above applies to every project. Confirm what applies to your address with the City, and your association, before construction. Local guidance reviewed 5 September 2026 on fostercity.org, codepublishing.com (Foster City Municipal Code) and bawsca.org.
One coordinated plan for the entire outdoor space
Each linked page carries the scope it covers, its pricing floor and the completed projects behind it. Mowing, cleaning and ongoing garden maintenance are not services we sell.
Design, backyard and front yard
How the design phase works and what it costs, then gathering spaces, planting, lawn areas and circulation drawn as one scheme rather than a list of features.
Pavers: driveways, patios, walkways and pool decks
Base, drainage and levels settled before the pattern is chosen. A driveway approach or a drain to the gutter needs an encroachment permit from Public Works.
Retaining walls and steps
Level changes evaluated alongside drainage and structural requirements rather than after them; a masonry wall over three feet needs a City permit.
Outdoor kitchens, bars and fire
Cooking, serving and fire features placed within the layout, with gas and electrical routed during base work.
Lighting, shade and water
Evening use, shade and sound considered as part of the plan, not added at the end.
Artificial turf
Where a low-water lawn makes sense and where it does not; in Foster City, EMID rebates it at $4 per square foot up to $5,000.
Budget and design fees
What does a Foster City landscape project cost?
Construction and design are contracted separately, so they are quoted separately and shown separately here.
Sequoia Outdoor offers a free initial one-hour onsite consultation, and the presentation that follows it is free as well. Concept plans start at $1,000, and more detailed design work is quoted according to the project. Construction projects have a $25,000 minimum, and qualifying design fees may be credited toward construction: if you enter into a construction contract with us within 30 days of your final design being delivered, an amount equal to the design fee is deducted from that contract.
The completed Foster City construction project in our recordsAbout $52,500Pavers, a cedar fence, turf and beach-pebble borders across a front and back yard, completed January 2026. One project is not a base for an average, so none is given. The construction minimum is $25,000.
The three published case studies nearby$75,000 to $205,000A San Mateo corner-lot front yard at $75,000 to $90,000, a Belmont backyard with a stone outdoor kitchen at $125,000 to $145,000 and a San Mateo front-and-back paver refresh at $180,000 to $205,000, each range the sum of its own published cost rows. Not Foster City pricing and not quotes for another property.
The eventual price depends on scope, access, grading, drainage, materials, structures, utilities, planting, approvals and other property-specific requirements. In Foster City the items most likely to move a budget are an association review that changes the design after it is priced, and a rebate claimed in the wrong order, which is forfeited; a turf rebate of $4 per square foot up to $5,000 is worth scheduling the inspection for.
Ask for the split before you commit. A proposal should separate design services, construction, specialist work such as arborist input or engineering, and anything excluded. If those sit in one number, you cannot tell what a change to one of them costs.
What 16 signed proposals cost shows the full spread across the Peninsula and South Bay.
Pricing reviewed 5 September 2026.
From first visit to completed landscape
- 01
Initial consultation
The property, your priorities, intended use, timing and investment expectations.
- 02
Site discovery
Access, grade, drainage, existing trees, utilities, structures and the other visible constraints.
- 03
Concept and design
Layout, features, materials and planting direction, to the design scope you selected.
- 04
Scope and construction proposal
The work Sequoia will perform, with assumptions, allowances and exclusions identified.
- 05
Approvals and preparation
Which City or County, fire, utility, engineering, arborist or other approvals may apply, and which of those services are inside the scope. Sequoia does not perform every specialty itself.
- 06
Construction and walkthrough
The approved scope coordinated, progress communicated, and the finished work reviewed with you.
The scheduled completion date is confirmed after the preconstruction walkthrough, not at the initial consultation. Schedule credits apply only to qualifying company-controlled delays and remain subject to the signed agreement and its exclusions. Read the schedule-credit terms.
Every claim here links to the thing that backs it
Sequoia Outdoor’s website currently reports 80 review listings and recommendations across six platforms as of 2026-08-30. That is a count of listings and recommendations, not of customers and not of Foster City projects. Read the review archive. The license is CSLB #1099847, verifiable on the state board’s register. The project count and figure on this page come from our own project records and are stated as such. The on-time schedule credit is subject to its complete published terms.
Foster City landscape design and build FAQs
Does Sequoia Outdoor work in Foster City?
Yes. Sequoia Outdoor is based in San Mateo, next door, and serves Foster City from there. Our project records show one completed Foster City construction project, photographed on this page. Design deliverables and construction work are defined and priced through their respective agreements.
Is the initial consultation free?
Yes, and so is the presentation that follows it. The initial one-hour on-site visit and the live walkthrough of your options and pricing are both free. Design work is separate, with concept plans starting at $1,000 and further deliverables quoted for the project.
What does a landscape project in Foster City cost?
The completed Foster City construction project in our records signed for about $52,500: pavers, a cedar fence, turf and beach-pebble borders across a front and back yard, completed January 2026. One project is not a base for an average. The three published case studies nearby, in San Mateo and Belmont, are published at $75,000 to $205,000, each the sum of its own cost rows. Construction projects start at $25,000.
How high can a fence be in Foster City?
Forty inches in a front yard for a fence, wall or hedge parallel to the street, with a 6-foot fence allowed only 20 feet or more back from the sidewalk under further conditions; 6 feet at the side and rear, or 7 where the part above 6 feet is lattice; and on a waterfront lot the rear fence steps down from 72 inches to 42 inches at the lagoon. Only a fence over 6 feet or a masonry or concrete wall over 3 feet needs a building permit, under Municipal Code Chapter 17.52.
Does the City rebate artificial turf in Foster City?
Yes, which most Peninsula water providers do not: Cal Water, Valley Water and the BAWSCA Lawn Be Gone program all exclude artificial turf. The Estero Municipal Improvement District’s Synthetic Turf Rebate pays $4 per square foot, up to $5,000 per residential customer, for replacing an existing irrigated, healthy lawn with synthetic turf. An on-site pre-installation inspection and City approval are required before any work starts, an installer’s estimate is required, and residents in a homeowners’ association are told to check its restrictions first. Dead grass, dirt, sand, rock and hardscape do not qualify.
Can I get a rebate for replacing my lawn with plants instead?
Yes. Through BAWSCA’s Lawn Be Gone program EMID pays $4 per square foot of lawn converted to a water-efficient planted landscape, with a $300 rain garden option, and a Notice to Proceed is required before the lawn comes out. EMID also rebates smart irrigation controllers, and rain barrels and cisterns are rebated up to $200 combined. We install both planted landscapes and artificial turf, so the rebate is part of the decision, not an afterthought.
Do I need a permit for a new driveway approach, sidewalk work or a drain to the street?
Yes. Activity within the public right-of-way requires an encroachment permit from the Public Works Department, applied for through the Engineering Division at City Hall.
Does my homeowners’ association have a say in my landscape?
Often. Many Foster City neighborhoods have an association with design rules, and the City’s own turf rebate page tells residents in one to check them. An association approval and a City permit are separate; a Foster City project schedules both, with the association’s review first because it can change the design.
Can I see examples of your Foster City work?
Yes. The completed Foster City project is shown on this page as photographs, with the completion month and the project size from our records, and no scope or price beyond that. Three case studies nearby in San Mateo and Belmont are published in full, with before-and-after photographs, cost rows and published ranges.
Does Sequoia guarantee the completion date?
Sequoia publishes an On-Time Schedule Credit policy. The scheduled completion date is confirmed after the preconstruction walkthrough, not at the first consultation. Credits apply only to qualifying company-controlled delays and remain subject to the signed agreement, its exclusions and the complete published terms.
The San Mateo page · Foster City fence rules · Foster City building permits · Synthetic Turf Rebate · Case studies · On-Time Schedule Credit terms
Foster City and the Cities Around It
Three things are worth confirming for your own address before design begins, because each changes who reviews the work: whether the lot backs onto the lagoon, whether an association has design rules for it, and whether a rebate is part of the budget, because it has to be approved before the first shovel.
Let’s Plan Your Foster City Landscape
Tell us what you want to change, how you hope to use the space, and the investment range you are considering. We will visit the property, discuss the appropriate design scope and explain the next step.
Construction projects start at $25,000. Design is quoted separately.