Brooks Kolb LLC Landscape Architecture

I had the pleasure of working with Brooks when a house designed by our firm came under new ownership. Brooks is professional and at the same time warm and personal. He always comes prepared with well-thought-out designs and original ideas, but is open to the ideas and needs of the client and other team members, and to working collaboratively. -Michelle Cozza, Demetriou Architects, PLLC

Brooks is an incredible landscape designer. He is extremely knowledgeable about plants: where they thrive and where they don't, and is remarkably creative in esthetic placement, with an eye towards complementary color combinations, textures, when they bloom, etc.. He really had a vision for our large backyard, basically starting from scratch. His finished landscape design was beautifully crafted. He is very professional and a pleasure to work with. He was always prompt, exceedingly thorough, and prepared. He was also always willing to accommodate our schedule, changes, wishes, or suggestions. He has a delightful personality and really conveys a passion for the beautiful work he does. His work is art. I give him my highest recommendation!

Brooks was absolutely fantastic to work with on our garden project. We have a steep front yard and Brooks designed a beautiful set of stairs and patio-which amazingly gave us so much useable space. On top of his superb design, he was a terrific team player and incorporated ideas from our garden designer and contractor. I would highly recommend him!

I recently completed a re-build on my waterfront house. I had a team of experts and I honestly feel that Brooks was one of the best choices I made in this project. He took time to talk to me about my likes, dislikes and concerns. He took notes and truly listened because as Spring has arrived, I am watching his beautiful landscape architecture and design come into color. Brooks' attention to detail is amazing and I am so glad he was on my team. I highly recommend working with Brooks Kolb.

Brooks is a professional landscape architect. He made the best decision for planting based on our constraints. He landscaped an area equal to nearly 15,000 sq ft. In Seattle. All of us love the work that Brooks has provided. Brooks not only did the landscape design but also helped with the project management and working with our neighbors when there were issues related to property line or shared items like fences. The project lasted about 2 years in total.

Brooks has done two major landscaping projects for us, and in both cases we were amazed at the results. The first project at our former residence involved reshaping the contours of our backyard, adding a water feature, and transforming the space into a garden of delights in which Brooks introduced a wide variety of beautiful tree, plant, and flower species. In the second, smaller project at our current home, he converted a mundane rectangular concrete patio into a circular design using natural stone punctuated with imaginative plantings and lighting. His style is unique, thoughtful, and he creates spaces to enjoy. His plant, lighting, and rockery designs are creative, but he is also sensitive to the budget of the project. Brooks and Steve Bruns (the landscape contractor) collaborated well on both projects, and we highly recommend both of them.

Brooks Kolb was superb in envisioning and creating the 3 acre garden for our home. He worked as a team with our architect, designer and contractor, and together they transformed our property into a dream come true. We have formal gardens accenting our home, a cutting garden for summer flowers, a wooded more natural section for birds and wildlife, a marsh area under the willows, and a property perimeter that blends in with the neighborhood. Our hardscapes and lighting provide a flow from area to area that make it a delight to walk the garden, day or night. All these years later, Brooks still stops by to see how the garden is maturing and to offer suggestions for care. And, to top it off, he communicates clearly and meets deadlines. I am confident that Brooks would listen to your needs and find a perfect solution for your landscape dream.

I hired Brooks Kolb to re-landscape a neglected lawn and garden. I don't know much about gardening, so it was difficult to communicate what I wanted. After 2 short consultations, Brooks came up with a plan that worked for both my husband and me. I am not visual, so I could not begin to imagine how it would turn out, but I trusted Brooks' knowledge and expertise. My garden is small, but Brooks' plan transformed it into the private urban sanctuary I had always dreamed of. I now have space to entertain with the soothing backdrop of running water and lush vegetation. It's magic. My only regret is that I did not find Brooks 20 years ago.

I have had the pleasure of working with Brooks Kolb during a remodel of our front and side yard. Brooks was always right on time and very professional in all my dealings with him and he was very engaging as a person. HIs ideas were very innovative and and he made suggestions that we never would have considered doing on our own. We could not be happier with the result of this project and our yard is something we are very proud to show off. He also recommended an installer who was wonderful to work with as well. I have to say it was a very positive and pleasant experience all around. I recommend Brooks without reservation.

We used Brooks Kolb to design and supervise the installation of our landscaping during a major remodel of our home. Brooks fit nicely into our team, came up with a wonderful design, and made himself available to oversee installation by the landscape installer as necessary. I highly recommend him to anyone looking for professional landscape design and services. Most sincerely, Cheryl

I discovered that landscape architects, like many architects, are very particular about the projects they accept and the budgets attached to those projects. When I found Brooks, it was through his incredibly refreshing website which goes into the architecturally verboten subject of pay scale. Based on that alone, I picked up the phone. We hit it off immediately. For 13 years my husband and I had been sitting on a double-slopped lot so challenging in fact, that in it’s history had never been addressed save for the 1980’s when the original owner blanketed the lot in decorative lava rock. The folks we purchased from were elderly and the home stood as it did from the day they moved into it in 1958. The building appeared to have landed on a lunar gravel bed like the Jupiter 2 in Lost In Space…a barren lot of rock with a building dropped onto it. But, Brooks took it on, unchanged as it was from 1958. He included everything on our wish-list in his gorgeous, hand-rendered, detailed plans that included all the hardscaping and all every plant by botanical name. His artistry showed as he took cues from the existing deck railing and architecture. Revisions to his original drawings were made during initial planning, as anticipated, and he stressed the importance of creating and sticking to a “master plan” so that the design would remain unified if we elected to do it in phases. The $60,000, 12-week project was completed on time and on budget. The two sections we decided to leave as/is for budget sake were tied nicely into the renovation because Brooks talked me into using the original lava rock to save money. (That was hard for me to do because I loathed that rock, but he was right about it in the end.) The design package included path lighting, a programmable watering system, hardscape, plantings, labor costs and all Brooks’ fees. He was very happy to get bids for us with several contractors that he works with regularly, but gave us the option to use our own. We opted to use John Tallar, one of Brooks’ contractors, and are thrilled with the work John did for us. John is a total pro and a wonderfully willing human being. I enjoyed working with him so much that I felt sad to see him go at the end of the project. And his years of experience with Brooks’ project installs really paid off on ours when it came to making small, on-site last minute changes to help the project move forward. It’s hard to come up with words sufficiently profound to express how we felt once the install was complete and the plans had become reality. We’d gone from 13 years of driving up to the house, getting out of the car, and running straight inside with our heads down- the way one lives in a condo- with no connection of experience to the exterior of our own home. Then, suddenly, just outside of 12 short weeks, and as if by magic, a barren moonwalk of shame had transformed to a fully functioning environment including lush, living greenery. The plans included creating an entry courtyard with a fountain I’d found myself, a private courtyard off the back of the house, and a beautiful semi-circle of lawn with a circular cement pad for setting out the fire bowl to enjoy during summer. In addition to these improvements, Brooks’ design solved a huge problem for us; where to park our large van off-street. He created a dual-purpose parking pad and summer patio with very sophisticated design that belies the hideous slabs of ubiquitous parking cement plaguing the average home. Complements come from neighbors and passers-by every single day. I don’t think it’s possible to recommend Brooks any more highly than I have here. Please give him a call to discuss your project. You will be as pleased with his work as we are now- enjoying our 3rd season of beautiful outdoor spaces worthy of such a wonderful neighborhood.

Brooks is a pleasure to work with. His approach to design is always knowledgeable, thoughtful and professional. I appreciate is enthusiasm for landscape architecture and his kind, easy going nature. He has the ability to design a beautiful space from large scale to small scale projects. I would highly recommend Brooks for landscape design services. Sara Imhoff Imprint Architecture and Design, LLC