OUTDOOR LIVING · WATER FEATURES · HARDSCAPE
Westside Outdoor Living Space
Westside, Bend, OR
PROJECT OVERVIEW
The original space was a steep hillside with nothing more than sage, rabbit brush, and boulder outcroppings — and one of the best views of the Deschutes River in all of Bend. The owners wanted to transform it into a year-round outdoor living room: a place to entertain, relax, and fully enjoy what was already there.
We rebuilt the space from the ground up. A 40-foot pondless stream now cascades down the hillside between mossy boulders. The existing deck was stripped, pressure-treated, reinforced, and refinished with Belgard Rustic Lafitt pavers. Cedar tongue-and-groove covers the pergola ceiling, with recessed lighting and infrared heaters overhead. A powder-coated cable wire railing frames the deck, and a hot tub was sunk flush into the new surface.
The outdoor fireplace — an Isokern natural gas chimney finished in Sebastian veneer and 2-inch mahogany flagstone — anchors the upper patio. Fifty FX Luminaire landscape lights, color- and brightness-adjustable via smartphone, illuminate the entire space after dark. Over 250 new trees, shrubs, and perennials complete the planting, with dark hemlock bark throughout.
The result is a fully realized outdoor living compound that makes the most of a challenging hillside site.
THE CHALLENGE
The site was a steep, unstable hillside with no usable outdoor space — just native scrub and boulders. The owners had a clear vision but a genuinely difficult canvas: any hardscape had to be engineered to handle the grade, the water feature had to work with the natural slope rather than against it, and the whole project had to preserve the river view that made the property worth transforming in the first place.
The existing deck was also in poor structural condition — it needed to be rebuilt from the framing up before any new surface could go on.
SCOPE OF WORK
Demolition of existing deck surface and structural assessment
Deck framing repair, pressure treatment, and reinforcement
Installation of 40-foot pondless stream with mossy boulders and recirculating pump
Belgard Rustic Lafitt paver deck surface installation
Cedar tongue-and-groove pergola ceiling with recessed lighting and infrared heaters
Powder-coated cable wire railing system
In-deck hot tub installation
Belgard Mega Arbel paver patio around hot tub with natural edges
Boulder bridge over stream
Isokern natural gas fireplace and chimney with Sebastian veneer and mahogany flagstone
50 FX Luminaire smart landscape lights (color and brightness app-controlled)
Planting of 250+ trees, shrubs, and perennials
Dark hemlock bark mulch throughout
WHAT MADE IT HARD
The hillside grade was the defining challenge throughout. Every element — the stream, the deck, the patio, the fireplace — had to be engineered to work on a slope that would have defeated a simpler design. The stream in particular required careful grading so water would flow naturally without eroding the hillside over time.
The deck rebuild was also more involved than anticipated. Once we stripped the surface, we found framing that needed significant structural reinforcement before we could proceed — which we addressed without delaying the overall timeline.
Finally, the 50-light FX Luminaire system required careful zoning and programming to create the right ambiance at different times of night and for different uses — entertaining, quiet evenings, and security. That level of control is what makes the space feel truly finished.
TIMELINE
Weeks 1–3: Deck demolition, structural assessment, framing repair, and pressure treatment.
Weeks 4–6: Stream excavation, liner installation, and boulder placement.
Weeks 7–10: Paver deck and patio installation, hot tub rough-in, railing system.
Weeks 11–13: Fireplace and chimney construction, pergola ceiling and heaters.
Weeks 14–15: Landscape lighting installation and programming.
Week 16: Planting, mulching, final punch list, and client walkthrough.
PROJECT DETAILS
LOCATION
Westside, Bend, OR
PROJECT TYPE
Full Outdoor Living Transformation
TIME TO COMPLETION
16 weeks
WATER FEATURE
40-ft pondless stream with mossy boulders
LIGHTING
50 FX Luminaire smart landscape lights
PLANTING
250+ trees, shrubs & perennials
SERVICES
Water Feature · Deck Refinishing · Paver Patio · Outdoor Fireplace · Landscape Lighting · Hot Tub · Planting
KEY MATERIALS & SPECS
- —Belgard Rustic Lafitt pavers — deck surface
- —Belgard Mega Arbel pavers — hot tub patio
- —Cedar tongue-and-groove — pergola ceiling
- —Isokern natural gas chimney system
- —Sebastian stone veneer — fireplace surround
- —2" mahogany flagstone — fireplace face
- —Powder-coated cable wire railing
- —FX Luminaire smart landscape lights (50 fixtures)
- —EPDM pond liner — pondless stream basin
- —Mossy boulders — stream channel
- —Dark hemlock bark mulch
- —250+ native and adapted trees, shrubs & perennials
PROJECT INVESTMENT
Premium outdoor living transformation — contact for estimate
BEFORE & AFTER
See the transformation from start to finish.
