FEEL
OF THE MOUNTAINS RETREAT
ARAPAHOE ACRES, ENGLEWOOD, CO
Bringing the atmosphere of the mountains into the city
Set within historic Arapahoe Acres, a neighborhood developed between 1949 and 1957 as an important expression of postwar residential design, the garden surrounds a mid-century modern house whose architecture is closely connected to the landscape. The design draws on the character of the Colorado mountains—not as a literal recreation, but through their geology, vegetation, habitat, sound and atmosphere. The existing garden and architecture provided a foundation for a landscape that could feel both rooted in its history and connected to the larger landscape of Colorado.
The garden was composed as a series of distinct but connected spaces. In the front garden, a restored trickling water feature brings sound and movement in an enclosed courtyard while providing a source of water for birds. A wooded shade garden creates a sense of retreat and acts as a buffer from the street. Beyond these quieter spaces, sculptural mounds rise through the garden, their striated granite outcroppings suggesting the exposed geology of the mountains. Lodgepole pine and bearberry reinforce the connection, bringing the character of higher elevations into the residential landscape.
The composition draws from principles of restraint, asymmetry, negative space and carefully considered views. Recycled stone and millstones are incorporated into the landscape, giving new purpose to materials with their own history. Landform, stone and planting work together to create a garden that feels shaped rather than decorated, with moments of openness and enclosure unfolding around the house.
The relationship between garden and architecture is particularly important. From within the house, planting, stone, landform and trees are composed as a series of changing views—almost like paintings that shift with the seasons and the light. Outside, places to sit and gather create opportunities to spend time within the garden, whether with friends or in quieter moments of observation. The sound of water, the movement of birds, the texture of flowers and trees, and the changing atmosphere of the garden bring a sense of the mountains into everyday life.
Rather than returning the property to a particular moment in its mid-century history, the garden adds another layer. Water, habitat, regional planting and the reuse of existing materials respond to contemporary conditions while preserving a sense of continuity with the house and its setting. Dobro Design was involved not only in the design of the landscape, but in its hands-on construction and establishment, working directly with the materials, planting and details as the garden took shape. With continued care, the trees will mature, planting will knit together, and the landscape will deepen its character over time—bringing something of the mountains into the everyday experience of a city garden.
Dobro Design
Landscape Architecture · Garden Design · Planting · Hands-on Construction · Stewardship
Project Team
Bartlett Tree Experts · Chapparo Trees · Designs by Sundown/
Irrigation · Graff Renovations/Carpenter · Materra Waterscapes · TMW Stonemasons · Client