OUTDOORLIVINGA P R I L 2 0 1 5 F E AT U R E D S P E C I A L S E C T I O N

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here is a family room in your back yard, a place to relax, enjoy family time, watch the children and

grandchildren play, entertain friends and neighbors, mark the holidays, do a little business. Your back yard is more potential living space, beyond the walls of your house, but to make it an integral part of your

lifestyle, it needs functionality, atmosphere, decor, personality. It is the “outdoor” to your “indoor,” and it’s an important asset to your family, social and business lifestyle. Maybe even your well-being. “We all spend too much time inside,” said Chris Lannert, president of the Oak Brook-based Illinois Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (IL-ASLA). “The ability to express yourself is much more limited in the house. But your yard is two to three times bigger than your house. There is an almost limitless list of things you can do.” “We come alive outside. You can teach your kids about the environment, walk around, breath the air, exercise, relax.” “What you’re really doing is investing in your family, a ‘stay-cation’ where you’re using those (travel) dollars on your yard to make it more enjoyable,” said Lannert, a landscape architect since 1970 and owner of The Lannert Group, a Geneva-based landscape design and planning firm. Then, Lannert said, “dream big.” “Go for the best, the bells and whistles and technology,” he said. Outdoor living space projects can range from a few thousand dollars to more than a million.

Regardless, Lannert advised to “plan for everything. Then you can implement it in phases, within your budget and the time frame you want.” Your outdoor living space can be where you relax to the sound of running water or the flickering of a firepit, cook for a family gathering or a gourmet meal, quietly enjoy a book or magazine, play video games or watch sports on a big-screen TV, check out the latest news or research a favorite topic on the Web, enjoy intimate conversation, play with kids or grandkids, dance or exercise, cultivate favorite plants or raise a vegetable garden, or just do nothing. Like painting a masterpiece, creating that space tailored to your needs and wants requires experience to design and build what goes inside the frame of your lot. It is not paint-by-numbers... some folding furniture, a charcoal or gas grill, a table with an oversized umbrella on a patio or deck, and some flower planters. It is a work of art rising from the blank canvas of your back yard, blending colors, textures and materials with usable features like lighting, shading, furniture and equipment for active and passive uses. A homeowner who wants that attractive, usable outdoor living space should first do a little homework that goes beyond just imagination, Lannert said. He suggested four sources for focusing your thoughts and to start the process of finding an architect or design/build contractor:

one Word-of-mouth referrals. Chances are, you have relatives, friends and neighbors, and business associates who have outdoor

secluded serenity BY PAUL KELMA

Photo courtesy of Wingren Landscape

living spaces and experiences with such projects.

two The ASLA Website (www.il-asla.org) for information on designers and builders in your area. A list is available for you to shop. IL-ASLA has about 600 licensed members, about two-thirds of them in the Chicago area.

three Internet searches for information, photos, first-hand accounts of homeowners’ experiences, and area firms, their products and services.

four Pictures from the Web, magazines and other sources that show what you like, don’t like and might want. It is easier to show a designer what you want.

Your idea of your outdoor living space might have features like brick and stonework, a firepit, an outdoor kitchen, dining space, lounge area, an audio-video system, running water feature, maybe a swimming pool or hot tub, seasonal planting areas, shaded areas, lighting, and play areas. But do-it-all-yourself has faded under the sheer complexity of such a project. And there is increasing pressure on communities to accommodate and protect everyone’s interests, including your neighbors. Depending on where you live, there are varying requirements and limits for landscaping and structures. For example, there might be a limit on total “hardscape,” the amount of hard cover from the driveway, walkways, buildings, patio or other structures. There are setbacks, the distance from a structure to your property line. Drainage is another issue, since whatever is built may mean less area to directly absorb runoff from rain and prevent flooding. The zoning, planning and permitting process is beyond the knowledge and time available to most homeowners. Time to call in the pros who can plan, design and build your outdoor living space, as well as deal with zoning, drainage, permits and approvals. “We sit down with the family and learn how they would like to use their back yard if they had the yard of their dreams. It’s not really about how they use it today,” said Jeff Wingren, owner of Wingren Landscape in Downers Grove, one of several firms serving the local area. It also helps if the homeowner has architectural plans and a plat of survey for the lot “so we can see the traffic patterns and how the house is laid out,” said Wingren residential architect Matt Thumm said. A very popular feature is moving water, since the sound has a natural, relaxing rhythm both day and night. An example is a coy pond with a waterfall. The biggest water feature is a swimming pool, which can redirect the focus of the whole outdoor living space merely by size. “It’s no longer just a ‘pool’,” said Mike Murillo, director of

sales and public relations for Barrington Pools Inc., a designer-builder of custom pools and outdoor living spaces. Barrington focuses on both how the family would use it and the home décor so it can be designed to “look like the house could not exist without the pool, and the pool could not exist without the house,” he said. “You’ll find that people tend to be closer just because the mood is enhanced,” said Tom Sekulsi, vice president of All Seasons Pools & Spas, Inc., in Orland Park. “It’s not just a pool for the kids any more.” Special lighting and other water features are popular ways to expand the “use” of the pool, he said. A waterfall feature provides the rhythmic sound of running water. Other enhancements such as a pergola around the pool can easily be blended with other features of the outdoor living space. Lannert said other very popular outdoor living space features include a full-scale outdoor kitchen, which has moved the big dinner party from inside to outside. The advent of LED lighting has also made that a particularly desirable feature, he said. Lighting and alternating colors can accent a water feature or a sculpture, and give a different look after dark to different areas of the outdoor living space. Shading structures also offer diversity, from the convenient pull-out awning to the wood or synthetic pergola. All of the plan needs to be coordinated, providing seamless appearance and contrast. The elements create an atmosphere, show off a personality and create an experience that can be enjoyed day or night, alone or together. Even more, Lannert said, a contained back yard has the same importance as a wide open space. The homeowner, he said, “has a stewardship of the land you control.”

Photo courtesy of Wingren Landscape

Photo courtesy of All Seasons Pools and Spas, Inc.

Add color-changing underwater lights to provide a relaxing and interesting atmosphere in the evening and at night.

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