Case Study

St. Anthony Condo Renovation

Project Overview

We have been working with this luxury condominium association in St. Anthony, MN for a few years now. The initial conversation came about partly because their neighbors were building a brand new building. To keep up with the look of the neighbors, they wanted to completely renovate both sides of the courtyard in between their buildings. The courtyard before was kind of a hodge podge of different plants and boulder walls. The tenants also had a community garden area that was a great idea but the execution and appearance were just never kept up. By renovating both courtyards at the same time, the building landscaping would be given a more uniform and formal look.

It’s safe to say that this is the biggest commercial project that KG Landscape has ever undertaken. The design phase of the project took quite a long time over the winter of 2015. The design phase took so long because our designer, Kent Gliadon, and the association wanted to get all of the plant choices correct for their formal courtyard. There was also a lot of logistics that went into the planning including a drainage system, irrigation system, and outdoor lighting. Part of the project was to install a drainage system for the buildings. We also upgraded all of the outdoor lighting into LED lights that are more energy efficient and brighter.

Thanks to the wonderful weather we had this spring and early summer, we were able to start the project at the beginning of May. There was an immense amount of demolition involved to get the plant beds ready. We had to remove all of the existing sod, plant material, and boulder walls. Then our crews used a bobcat to install brand new topsoil. We bought a two person auger to plant the plants quicker and more efficiently. The mulch we used was the best available in Minnesota, Western Red Cedar. It is a beautiful type of mulch that smells wonderful and really accentuates the bright colors of the plants. Overall, the project was very successful. You can see in the before and after pictures just how dramatic the difference is from an inconsistent, out dated planting to a more formal, consistent courtyard. This design will impressive the residents and visitors for years to come.

More Project Information

Location: The project was completed at a luxury condominium complex in St. Anthony, MN.

Timeframe: This project took 3-4 weeks to complete. The main parts of the project were completed in 3 weeks, however, some add on items were completed over the following weeks.

Materials: There were over 150 plants installed in the courtyard area. Roses, hydrangeas, arborvitaes, and day lilies are the primary plants. All of the outdoor lighting was redone with LED light bulbs from John Deere Landscapes. The top dressing is all plant beds was Western Red Cedar mulch from Ceres. Irrigation system was renovated to include dripline in all plant beds and annual beds.

Notes from construction: We used an auger to install the plants more quickly in the clay like dirt in the courtyard. It saved a lot of man hours and back breaking work. Our team laid down plywood all over the sidewalks to protect them from the bobcat tracks. Upgrading the outdoor lighting to LED bulbs is one of those “pay now, save later” moves.

This project was completed in May 2015 by KG Landscape Management.