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Burbank's residential lots run smaller than almost anywhere else we work — the city's mid-century housing stock includes plenty of "half lots," some under 1,000 square feet of total property. That makes space efficiency the defining design challenge for most Burbank projects, in a way it simply isn't in neighboring communities with larger yards.
We design ponds, waterfalls and water features built around that reality — features that read as substantial without asking for square footage most Burbank backyards don't have.
Most of Burbank sits on the flat floor of the San Fernando Valley, built out with mid-century homes on genuinely small lots. That changes what a "custom water feature" should even mean here — a design that would read as modest on a quarter-acre Brentwood lot can be the entire visual anchor of a small Burbank backyard.
Vertical and near-vertical features tend to earn their keep in this setting: water walls, compact pondless waterfalls, and courtyard fountains that deliver sound and movement without competing for the limited square footage a patio, dining area or play space also needs. When a full pond is the right call, we usually design it smaller and more deliberately positioned than we would on a larger property, so it becomes the backyard's focal point rather than crowding everything else out.
Not all of Burbank fits that description. The Hillside District and Burbank Hills, tucked into the southern foothills of the Verdugo Mountains on the city's northern edge, are a different environment entirely — larger, irregular lots, winding streets, sweeping valley views, and real wildfire-zone considerations that come with hillside terrain anywhere in this part of Los Angeles.
For these properties, the design approach shifts toward what we'd plan for any hillside site: slope, drainage, access for equipment, and fire-conscious placement of planting around the water feature — closer to a Glendale foothill project than a flatland Burbank one.
For flatland and compact-lot properties (most of Burbank):
Pondless Waterfalls — flowing water without the footprint of an open pond, often the single best option on a tight lot.
Learn More About Pondless Waterfalls
Decorative Fountains — courtyard and entry-scale features that make an impact in a small space.
For Hillside District and Burbank Hills properties:
Koi Ponds & Ecosystem Ponds — suited to the larger lots and terrain typical of the hillside neighborhoods, with grading and fire-conscious landscaping scoped into the design.
Also available throughout Burbank:
All scoped to your property's location and lot size.
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