Case study

Fire Pit Terrace, Cobble Rock Channel and Sport-Court Surround in Atherton

An Atherton estate yard rebuilt around a dry rock channel of boulders and Fresno cobble, a paver fire-pit terrace, hand-built slat fencing and 12 brass path lights, finished alongside a separate sport-court build.

Location: Atherton
Completed: December 2025
Project size: 1555
Investment: $96,150–$106,360

Full project details

Timeline: Beds opened September 9, 2025. Hardscape, the rock channel and the slat fence ran through October. The rebuilt fire pit waited five weeks on its Elements burner, delivered December 16 and burning December 20, 2025, when the owner signed off with the sport-court build finishing alongside.

The challenge

This Atherton property had mature redwoods, a pool and plenty of lawn, and none of it worked together. The slope beside the pool shed water toward it, the beds were overgrown, flagstone and old concrete sat where the family wanted to gather, and a pickleball court was about to be built by a separate specialty contractor, which meant the landscape had to be designed and sequenced around another company's schedule and its bare edges.

Our approach

Sequoia opened the beds the second week of September 2025, demolishing 273 sq ft of flagstone, old concrete and eight footings, and regrading the lawn so runoff moves away from the pool. The centerpiece is a dry rock channel of Fresno cobble, sixteen boulders and stabilized pami pebbles winding from the terrace to the trees, crossed by Belgard Landings steps and a 363 sq ft Avalon Slate terrace with a block fire pit and seat walls. A vertical-slat redwood fence was ripped and assembled on site along the new court, with a steppingstone path and planted rock buffer wrapping the edges the court builder left. Twelve brass path lights run on a dimmable WiFi transformer, irrigation was re-piped where it conflicted with the new fence, and 137 new plants, five 24-inch box trees and fresh mulch finished the beds.

The outcome

Two decisions late in the build say more about the process than the plans do. When the owner saw the finished tan fire pit and wanted a different look, Sequoia wrote a change order, demolished its own week-old work and rebuilt the pit in charcoal block around an Elements 34-inch burner, which took five weeks to arrive; it was delivered December 16 and burning by December 20, the day the owner signed off. And when the sport-court crew finished, the owner asked for more rock along the court edges, so the buffer grew by one more approved change order. The yard now moves from terrace to channel to court as one design.

Investment mix

Rounded from the signed proposal. Map pins show an approximate neighborhood.

Rock landscape: 16 boulders, Fresno cobble channel and stabilized pami-pebble gardens$29,000–$32,000
Hardscape: 363 sq ft Belgard Avalon Slate terrace and Landings steps$13,300–$14,800
Planting: 137 plants, five 24-inch box trees, topsoil and mulch$11,400–$12,600
Low-voltage lighting: 12 brass path lights on a dimmable WiFi transformer$11,500–$12,700
Fire pit and seat walls, rebuilt in charcoal block with an Elements 34-inch burner$11,100–$12,300
Pergola covers over the existing frames$6,800–$7,500
Vertical-slat redwood fence, ripped and built on site$6,300–$7,000
Flagstone and concrete demolition, including eight footings$2,400–$2,600
Concrete stepping blocks set 18 to 24 inches deep$1,600–$1,800
Regrading at the lawn to move drainage away from the pool$1,250–$1,400
Redwood-forest path relocation$840–$930
Irrigation re-piping at the new fence line$660–$730

Total investment$96,150–$106,360

Build highlights

Crew placing Fresno cobble and boulders in the new rock channel in Atherton, CA

The rock channel

Sixteen boulders, Fresno cobble and stabilized pami pebbles were placed by hand into a dry channel that reads as a creek bed and quietly handles the slope's runoff.

Irrigation lines being re-piped where they conflicted with the new fence line in Atherton, CA

The conflict nobody plans for

The new fence line landed on existing irrigation. Thirty feet of line was dug out and sixty feet re-piped, priced as its own small line item instead of buried in a lump sum.

Crew hand-building the vertical slat redwood fence on site in Atherton, CA

A fence built like furniture

The vertical-slat redwood fence was ripped and assembled on site so its spacing could follow the court and the path exactly, rather than forcing prefab panels onto a custom line.

New charcoal block caps staged beside the original fire pit before the rebuild in Atherton, CA

Rebuilding our own work

The first fire pit was finished and structurally fine. The owner wanted a different color, so a change order was written and the pit was demolished and rebuilt in charcoal block. That is what a change order is for.

First fire in the rebuilt pit with the Elements gas burner at dusk in Atherton, CA

First fire, December 20

The Elements 34-inch burner took five weeks to arrive. It was delivered December 16, installed with the owner's plumber running the gas line, and burning four days later, the day the owner signed off.

Before and after

Before — stripped lawn mound beside the pool with play structure and redwoods in Atherton, CA — Same pool curve and redwood trunks: the stripped mound beside the pool became the cobble rock channel, crossed by steppingstones and lit by brass path lights.

After — the same mound rebuilt as a cobble rock channel with boulders, path lights and steppingstones beside the pool in Atherton, CA — Same pool curve and redwood trunks: the stripped mound beside the pool became the cobble rock channel, crossed by steppingstones and lit by brass path lights.

Before — bare dirt strip along the edge of the new red sport court in Atherton, CA — Same red court tiles and basketball hoop: the bare strip the court builder left became a planted rock buffer behind the new slat fence.

After — finished planting and rock buffer along the same sport court edge and basketball hoop in Atherton, CA — Same red court tiles and basketball hoop: the bare strip the court builder left became a planted rock buffer behind the new slat fence.

Before — the first tan block fire pit as originally built on the paver terrace in Atherton, CA — The same fire pit, twice. The owner saw the first tan version and wanted a different look, so it was demolished and rebuilt in charcoal block with the Elements burner.

After — the rebuilt charcoal-gray fire pit with lava rock and gas burner on the same terrace in Atherton, CA — The same fire pit, twice. The owner saw the first tan version and wanted a different look, so it was demolished and rebuilt in charcoal block with the Elements burner.

Project gallery

Vertical slat fence beside the concrete steppingstone path with pebble joints in Atherton, CA — The slat fence and steppingstone path with pebble joints, along the court.

Transition from sport court to steppingstone path through the slat fence gate in Atherton, CA — Court to garden: the gate opening in the slat fence.

Planted buffer bed with river rock along the red sport court in Atherton, CA — The planted buffer that replaced the court builder's bare edge.

Belgard Landings paver steps with cobble channel and path light in Atherton, CA — Belgard Landings steps over the cobble channel, path light on.

Paver steps crossing the dry cobble channel below the terrace in Atherton, CA — The channel passing under the terrace steps.

Vertical slat redwood fence with ornamental grasses in Atherton, CA — Slat fence detail with ornamental grasses.

Red sport court with basketball hoop behind the new landscape buffer in Atherton, CA — The sport court, built by a specialty contractor, framed by Sequoia's buffer and fence.

Slat fence and steppingstone path along the sport court after rain in Atherton, CA — The court-side path after rain.

Frequently asked questions

What did this Atherton backyard cost?

The signed base contract was about $102,000 against a $136,000 list price, spread across the component table above. The owner later approved a change order for additional rock along the new sport court; the court itself and the gas line were separate contracts with other companies. See how this project compares across everything we have published on the Bay Area landscaping cost index.

Why was the fire pit built twice?

The first pit was built to plan in tan block. When the owner saw it finished, he wanted a different look, so Sequoia wrote a change order, demolished its own work and rebuilt the pit in charcoal block around the Elements burner. A preference change late in a project is normal; the change-order process is what keeps it from becoming a dispute.

Did Sequoia build the pickleball court?

No. A sport-court specialist built the court itself. Sequoia designed and built everything around it: the vertical-slat fence, the steppingstone path, the planted rock buffer along its edges, and the drainage and irrigation changes the new court forced.

What is the rock channel?

A dry, creek-style channel of Fresno cobble and sixteen boulders with stabilized pami-pebble gardens around it. It replaces lawn on the slope beside the pool, needs no water, and gives runoff a place to go instead of the pool deck.

How long did the project take?

Beds opened September 9, 2025, and the owner signed off December 20. Most of the hardscape and fence work was done by late October; the last five weeks were spent waiting on the fire-pit burner, a supply delay Sequoia flagged to the owner as soon as the order was placed.

Who ran the gas line to the fire pit?

The owner's plumber, coordinated by Sequoia. Gas work was excluded from the landscape contract and priced directly by the plumber, which is stated plainly in the proposal rather than hidden inside a landscape line item.

What lighting was installed?

Twelve brass Lancer path lights on risers, wired with 500 feet of 12/2 low-voltage cable to a Vista 300W transformer with dimmable WiFi control, so each zone can be tuned from a phone.

Project location

Approximate neighborhood near Atherton. The pin is displaced by approximately 150 metres to protect client privacy.