The program called for developing much needed outdoor living space, a detached single bay garage to stow the owner's motorcycle, and aspirations to restore the heirloom grape arbor and other specimen plantings in the rear yard.

The success of the design is in how it re-imagines the utilitarian (driveway, garage) and leverages this outdoor space to become a living landscape. Gone are the days of blacktop. The “driveway” dazzles the eye as a river of stone, flowering myrtle and moss. Large sinuous granite slabs connect the car from curb to garage. But this is no ordinary garage. It too, has multiple functions: music room, party event space, and of course, as off-street parking.

To the rear of the existing house, we designed a generous deck and pergola to engage the interior with the exterior. The heirloom grapevines were cleverly incorporated around the base of the new deck. A millstone—uncovered while creating the driveway—was salvaged and transformed into an eye-catching water feature at the far end of the garden.