Outdoor Living in Lake Dallas, TX
Outdoor living is the covered patio, pool, kitchen, stone and lighting that make a backyard part of the home. Longhorn designs and builds them together for Lake Dallas homeowners in Denton County, with one family-owned team.
- 40+Years in Business
- 15,000+Projects Completed
- 1984Family-Owned Since
- 90DFW Cities Served
Before you build in Lake Dallas
Lake Dallas takes its name from the reservoir impounded in the 1920s that is now Lewisville Lake, and the town is hemmed between I-35E and the lake shore, so its older platted lots are small and many of them slope toward the water.
That ground decides how a slab, a pool shell or a footing has to be built here. Here is what it does to a patio.
We file the permit with the City of Lake Dallas and follow it through review, so the schedule doesn’t stall on paperwork.
Longhorn has built across Denton County and the wider Metroplex since 1984, and every project starts with a free design visit and a firm price.
Homes and Yards in Lake Dallas
Lake Dallas is a lakeside resort community that grew after 1940 with use of Lewisville Lake and, by 1980, with growth between Dallas and Denton.
In neighborhoods of that age the original patio and fencing are often due for replacement, and mature trees shape where a pool or a cover can sensibly go.
Lake Dallas sits on the shores of Lewisville Lake. Open ground near the water tends to catch more wind, so shade structures are anchored and placed with the breeze in mind.
Lake Cities Municipal Utility Authority, based in Lake Dallas, using wells plus treated surface water bought from the Upper Trinity Regional Water District.
The site was settled in 1852 as French Settlement and took the name Garza in 1881 when the Dallas and Wichita Railway built through. The first dam near Garza, begun in February 1928, was breached in 1957 after the Garza-Little Elm dam began impounding on November 1, 1954; the combined lake was renamed Lewisville Lake in the mid-1970s. Incorporation came in 1965 after a nine-year legal fight. The census count was 1,431 in 1970, 3,177 in 1980, 6,166 in 2000 and 7,708 in 2020.
The Lake Cities Municipal Utility Authority holds a contract for 3.8 million gallons a day from the Upper Trinity Regional Water District and supplements it with three wells in peak summer demand. The city covers 2.5 square miles with five parks; Willow Grove Park’s trail follows the Lewisville Lake shoreline.
A permit is required for all fences built, altered, repaired or replaced. Fence height is 6 feet in the R-14000 and R-1-4000A districts and 8 feet in R-16000, R-1-7200 and R-1-10000; front-yard fences are limited to 3 feet, or 4 feet for chain link. Accessory structures must stay out of the front yard, sit 5 feet from side and rear lines and stay under 15 feet tall. A pool must be at least 5 feet from any building and 3 feet from side and rear lines and be fully enclosed by a barrier at least 4 feet high. Pool and accessory structure plans may need a plan review of up to 10 business days at City Hall, 212 Main Street.
What each outdoor project needs in Lake Dallas, TX
How is a pool built in Lake Dallas?
Eastern Cross Timbers ground is sandier loam over clay, which digs more kindly than the black prairie but drains onto a layer that does not. On a pool that shows up as water travelling under the deck, so the drainage and the backfill detail matter as much as the shell. In Lake Dallas the permit goes through the City of Lake Dallas, and Longhorn files it and follows it through inspection. More on pools.
What does a patio cover need in Lake Dallas?
Eastern Cross Timbers loam is easier to dig than clay, but it sits on clay, so a post hole that looks clean at three feet can still be in moving ground at five. Footings are sized for what is under the sand, not what the auger came through first. In Lake Dallas the permit goes through the City of Lake Dallas, and Longhorn files it and follows it through inspection. More on patio covers.
How is a pergola built to last in Lake Dallas?
In the Eastern Cross Timbers the sand drains and the clay beneath it does not, so a pergola post can sit in a hole that holds water after a storm. The footing detail and the grade around each post are what keep the base of a wooden post dry. More on pergolas.
Can a sunroom or screened enclosure be added in Lake Dallas?
A sunroom or screened enclosure in Lake Dallas is attached to the house, so it is permitted through the City of Lake Dallas and sits on footings designed for the ground under it. We match the roofline and the exterior to the house so it reads as part of it. More on sunrooms and patio enclosures.
How a Backyard Project Runs in Lake Dallas
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A free design visit in Lake Dallas
A designer comes out to the house, measures the space a backyard project has to fit, walks the access a crew would need, and talks through what you want it to do. You leave with a firm price. On Eastern Cross Timbers ground, that is also when the grading, drainage and movement details get decided rather than improvised on site.
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Drawings, permit and HOA
We file the permit with the City of Lake Dallas and follow it through review, so the schedule does not stall on paperwork. Where an HOA wants a submittal, we prepare the drawings it asks for.
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One crew, one schedule
The same team builds the whole backyard project in order, so the slab, the structure, the electrical and the finish work are not three different companies working around each other.
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Walkthrough and warranty
We walk the finished backyard project with you, settle the punch list and leave one warranty on the work, and we are still Denton County-local if you need us later.
Lake Dallas outdoor living questions
Almost always, for pools and for anything attached to the house, including patio covers, sunrooms and enclosures. Longhorn files the permit with the City of Lake Dallas and handles the inspections, so the schedule does not stall on paperwork.
Lake Dallas sits on Eastern Cross Timbers ground in Denton County. The ground decides how a slab, a pool shell or a footing has to be built, so we plan the drainage and the footings for it at the first visit rather than after something moves.
Where an HOA in Lake Dallas asks for a submittal, we prepare the drawings and details it wants, alongside the city permit, so the approval runs in parallel with the design rather than after it.
Yes. Many homeowners start with one piece, such as a pool or a patio cover, and add the rest later. We plan the whole space up front so the gas, power, water and drainage for later phases are in place from the start.
Other cities we build in near Lake Dallas
Outdoor living guides
Outdoor Flooring for a Frisco Backyard: Pick by Zone
One yard, five jobs for the ground: dining, cooking, swimming, play and the dog. Here is how to match a surface to each zone, and what Frisco’s clay, heat and city rules change.
Outdoor Kitchen Countertop Materials in Frisco, TX
Granite, porcelain, quartzite and quartz all behave differently in Frisco sun, freezes and clay. Here is a pick by exposure, a sealing test, and what the base under the stone needs.
HOA Approval for a Patio Cover in Texas: DFW Guide
The HOA and the city are two separate approvals, and the HOA usually comes first. Here is the packet a DFW committee wants, how long it takes, why it says no, and how to answer a denial.
Free design visits in Lake Dallas
Tell us what you have in mind and we’ll come measure, talk options and give you a straight number. No obligation, no pressure.
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