Landscape design-build in San Mateo, California
Landscape Design & Build in San Mateo, CA
San Mateo is where Sequoia Outdoor is based and where most of our work is. Since 2023 our project records show 28 completed San Mateo projects, four of them written up with costs, plans and before-and-after photographs. We design and build paver patios and driveways, retaining walls and steps, decks and pergolas, outdoor kitchens, planting, drainage and lighting as one coordinated project.
The city has two kinds of lot: the hillside neighborhoods to the west, where the grade and the drainage decide the design, and the flatter streets toward the Bay, where the base and the water table do. Three of the four documented projects below are hillside builds, because that is where the hardest problems were; the fourth is a flat corner-lot front yard. 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.
San Mateo snapshot
Home base
San Mateo, serving the Peninsula & South Bay
Completed San Mateo projects since 2023
28, from company project records
Documented San Mateo work
4 published case studies, plus 3 photographed builds
Construction project minimum
$25,000
Review footprint
80 review listings and recommendations across six platforms as of 2026-08-30
A Terraced Backyard Built Into a San Mateo Hillside
In the 94402 hills, a steep, mossy backyard with cracked side-yard concrete and water running the wrong way became three usable levels: a decomposed-granite play area at the bottom, a turf lawn and planting terraces behind curved segmental walls in the middle, and a Calstone paver patio on top where the steps climb to a new redwood deck with cable railing. Active construction ran about eight weeks, from demolition in late March 2024 to completion in mid-June 2024.
What the design decided
Hold the hillside first. The curved Calstone segmental walls went in before anything else, set on geogrid with perforated pipe and drain rock behind them, and those walls fixed the terrace levels that everything above and below followed. Then 2,352 sq ft of Calstone Quarry Stone, Versailles and Belgard Quarziti pavers across the upper patio and paths, edged with a dark border band and locked with polymeric sand; 402 sq ft of artificial turf and 455 sq ft of sod on the middle terrace; 73 plantings, mulch and rock beds stepping down to the play area; a 370-foot drain system and new irrigation; and low-voltage lighting on the steps and walls. Out front, the same walls and pavers rebuilt the driveway.
The material plan
This is Sequoia’s own material plan for the project, the drawing used to price and build it: the wall lines and their radii, the paver fields, the turf and sod terraces, the play area and the drain routes. It is not a permit set, not an engineered drawing and not a City approval.
What it cost
- Pavers and hardscape, 2,352 sq ft of Calstone and Belgard
- $61,500–$71,000
- Retaining walls, caps and step edges
- $50,000–$57,500
- Turf, sod, planting and rock areas
- $46,500–$53,500
- Drainage and irrigation
- $36,500–$42,000
- Lighting and site logistics
- $35,500–$41,000
- Published project range
- $230,000–$265,000
What this figure is. It covers the documented scope above, from the walls to the lighting, and not the design fee. The range is the sum of the case study’s published cost rows, rounded from the signed proposal, so it is not a verified final expenditure, not a San Mateo average and not a quote for another property. A large project by any measure; a focused yard improvement starts at the construction minimum. Completed June 2024.
Three More Documented San Mateo Projects
Two hillside builds and one flat corner-lot front yard, each with a full case study: the scope, the material plan, the cost rows and the photographs. Each range is the sum of that project’s published cost rows.
Sugarloaf, November 2023Paver Terrace, Stone Walls and Outdoor Kitchen on a San Mateo Hillside
About 232 linear feet of stone-veneer segmental retaining walls and capped pillars, a multi-level Calstone paver terrace with curved steps, a hot tub level, an L-shape outdoor kitchen island, drainage and step lighting, built into a hillside from July to November 2023.
November 2024Layered Pavers, Walls, Lighting and Planting for a San Mateo Home
Calstone Quarry Stone pavers across the driveway, side yard and rear patio, garden walls, drainage, irrigation, path and uplighting, sod and planting, coordinated as one front-and-back refresh.
January 2026A Cleaner Front Yard With Stronger Edges
A corner-lot front and side yard rebuilt with a curved paver walkway, artificial turf panels, river-rock borders, drainage, irrigation, path lighting and new planting, from mid-December 2025 to late January 2026.
More San Mateo Project Photos
Three further San Mateo builds, photographed on site. None has a written case study, so no scope or budget is quoted for them beyond what the photographs and our records show. Each is a separate property. Browse every documented Sequoia project.
Two published projects in neighboring cities
Hillsborough and Belmont border San Mateo and have their own tree, drainage and permit rules. Each range is rounded from that project’s signed proposal and is not San Mateo pricing. See the full case-study library.
HillsboroughPavers, Turf and Walls in Hillsborough
Belgard paving, artificial turf, retaining walls, drainage, lighting and planting areas across the property.
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.
Planning a Landscape Around Your San Mateo Property
Six things worth settling before materials are chosen. Not every San Mateo lot slopes, sits in a fire zone or has a protected tree, and a straightforward yard does not need the process a complicated site does.
Hillside lots and flat lots are different projects
West of El Camino the city climbs, and on those lots the grade and the drainage decide the design before any material does: walls that hold the slope, drain lines behind them, and terraces sized to what the hill allows. Three of the four documented San Mateo projects are hillside builds and each of those put the walls and the drainage in first. On the flatter streets toward the Bay the question is the base and the water table under a patio or driveway. Substantial grading, drainage changes, walls or structures may need review or professional input. We design and build landscapes; we do not provide geotechnical engineering or slope-stability analysis, and where that expertise is needed it comes from a licensed professional named in the scope.
Oaks at ten inches, everything else at fifteen
Under Municipal Code Chapter 13.40 a heritage tree is an oak with a trunk diameter of 10 inches or more, or any other species at 15 inches or more, measured 54 inches above the ground, and every tree in the public right-of-way is a protected street tree. Removing a protected tree on private property, or major pruning, needs a permit through the City’s online portal. The rule that catches landscape projects is the Tree Protection Zone: a circle around the trunk with a radius of ten times its diameter. If construction activity, which the City defines to include landscaping, reaches into that zone, a Tree Protection Plan prepared by an ISA Certified Arborist must be approved before a building permit is issued. We do not employ a certified arborist; where a plan is required it comes from a private arborist. Protected trees and street tree permits.
Driveways, sidewalks and underdrains
Any work in the public right-of-way needs an encroachment permit from Public Works. The City’s own examples are the ones a landscape project meets: a new or repaired driveway approach, sidewalk, curb and gutter, and a sidewalk underdrain, which is the legal way to get a downspout or a yard drain to the street. The application goes in by email with insurance certificates naming the City as additional insured, a fee and a cash or bond deposit, so it needs to be in the schedule before the driveway is. Encroachment permits.
Hillside parcels and the fire hazard maps
The City’s General Plan 2040 safety element maps Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones inside the city limits, in the western hills, and directs new residential development away from them. In a mapped zone, defensible-space rules and Wildland-Urban Interface construction standards can apply to qualifying work, and the practical effect on a landscape plan is what goes in the first five feet against the house: mulch, fencing and planting choices. Fire code in San Mateo is enforced by San Mateo Consolidated Fire. No landscape makes a property fireproof. Check your address on the state viewer before the design assumes either way. Fire Hazard Severity Zones and San Mateo Consolidated Fire.
Cal Water, rebates and the leaf-blower ordinance
San Mateo’s water is supplied by California Water Service, not the City, so the lawn-to-garden turf replacement rebate runs through Cal Water and its conditions decide eligibility before any figure does; artificial turf is not a rebate route. The City and BAWSCA publish a $100-per-barrel rain barrel rebate. Qualifying new or rehabilitated landscapes tied to a permit may fall under the state Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance as the City applies it, so plant selection, hydrozones and irrigation are designed together. One more date for the maintenance plan: gas-powered leaf blowers are prohibited in the city from 1 January 2027. Water conservation.
One portal for building, planning and trees
Building permits, planning applications and private-property tree removals are all submitted through the City’s Customer Self-Service portal, with fees paid online and plan comments answered there; eligible projects can book a virtual over-the-counter review. Which permits a landscape project needs depends on the scope. Retaining walls above the code threshold, decks and pergolas, gas and electrical for an outdoor kitchen, drainage connections and tree impacts can each involve a different review, and a building-permit exemption does not remove an encroachment or tree permit. Confirm the set for your address before construction. Online Permit Center.
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 before construction. Local guidance reviewed 5 September 2026 on cityofsanmateo.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 sidewalk underdrain in the right-of-way needs an encroachment permit.
Retaining walls and steps
Level changes evaluated alongside drainage and structural requirements rather than after them.
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, including rebate eligibility.
Budget and design fees
What does a San Mateo 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 four documented San Mateo projects$75,000 to $265,000Three hillside properties and one corner-lot front yard, each range the sum of its own published cost rows: $230,000 to $265,000 for the terraced 94402 backyard, $220,000 to $250,000 for the Sugarloaf terrace and kitchen, $180,000 to $205,000 for the layered front-and-back refresh, $75,000 to $90,000 for the front-yard rebuild with pavers, turf, drainage and lighting. Not San Mateo averages and not quotes for another property.
All 28 completed San Mateo projects since 2023Median about $48,000From our own project records, so it includes the focused jobs that never get a case study: a driveway, a side yard, a wall, a lawn. Half of them signed for less than that and half for more. The construction minimum is $25,000.
The eventual price depends on scope, access, grading, drainage, materials, structures, utilities, planting, approvals and other property-specific requirements. On a hillside lot the walls and the drainage can cost as much as the finishes, and an encroachment or tree permit adds time before it adds cost.
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, 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 San Mateo projects. Read the review archive. The license is CSLB #1099847, verifiable on the state board’s register. The on-time schedule credit is subject to its complete published terms.
San Mateo landscape design and build FAQs
Is Sequoia Outdoor based in San Mateo?
Yes. Sequoia Outdoor is based in San Mateo and serves San Mateo and Santa Clara counties from here. Since 2023 our project records show 28 completed San Mateo projects, four of them published as full case studies. 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 San Mateo cost?
The four documented San Mateo projects are published at $75,000 to $90,000 for a corner-lot front yard with pavers, turf, drainage and lighting, and $180,000 to $205,000, $220,000 to $250,000 and $230,000 to $265,000 for three hillside builds with walls, drainage, pavers, planting and lighting, each the sum of that project’s cost rows. Across all 28 completed San Mateo projects in our records since 2023, the median is about $48,000, because most are focused jobs: a driveway, a patio, a wall, a lawn. Construction projects start at $25,000.
Do I need retaining walls and drainage before a patio on a San Mateo hillside?
On a sloped lot, usually yes, and in that order. All three documented San Mateo hillside projects built the walls first, on geogrid with perforated pipe and drain rock behind them, and set the patio levels from the walls. Pavers or gravel alone do not hold a grade or resolve a drainage problem, and substantial grading or walls may need engineering from a licensed professional named in the scope.
Which trees are protected in San Mateo?
Oaks with a trunk diameter of 10 inches or more and any other species at 15 inches or more, measured 54 inches above the ground, plus every tree in the public right-of-way. Removing or major-pruning a protected tree on private property needs a City permit. If construction, including landscaping, reaches inside a protected tree’s protection zone (a radius of ten times the trunk diameter), a Tree Protection Plan by an ISA Certified Arborist must be approved before a building permit is issued.
Do I need a permit for a new driveway approach, sidewalk or yard drain to the street?
Yes. Any work in the public right-of-way needs an encroachment permit from San Mateo Public Works; the City’s own examples include driveway approaches, sidewalk and curb work and sidewalk underdrains. The application is made by email with insurance certificates naming the City, a fee and a cash or bond deposit.
Is my property in a Fire Hazard Severity Zone?
Parts of the western hills are mapped as Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones in the City’s General Plan 2040 safety element, and the state maps show the zone boundaries by address. In a mapped zone, defensible-space and Wildland-Urban Interface rules can apply to qualifying work, and what sits in the first five feet from the house matters most in a landscape plan. Fire code is enforced by San Mateo Consolidated Fire. No landscape makes a property fireproof.
How are permits handled in San Mateo?
Online. Building permits, planning applications and private-property tree removals all go through the City’s Customer Self-Service portal, where fees are paid and plan comments answered; eligible projects can use a virtual over-the-counter review. Encroachment permits are a separate Public Works application, and street-tree work is a separate Parks and Recreation permit.
Can I see examples of your San Mateo work?
Yes. Four San Mateo case studies are published with before-and-after photographs, material plans, cost rows and published ranges, and three further San Mateo builds are shown on this page as photographs with no scope or budget quoted for them.
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 94402 case study · The Sugarloaf case study · The layered pavers case study · The front-yard case study · San Mateo Online Permit Center · Protected trees · On-Time Schedule Credit terms
San Mateo and the Cities Around It
San Mateo is Sequoia Outdoor’s home city, and the neighboring cities are the next most common addresses in our records. Three things are worth confirming for your own address before design begins, because each changes who reviews the work: whether the lot slopes enough to need walls and engineering, whether any tree on it meets the ten-inch oak or fifteen-inch protected threshold, and whether the parcel sits in a mapped fire hazard zone.
Let’s Plan Your San Mateo 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.