Goodbye, front lawn; hello, outdoor living room
“With water supplies dwindling and sustainable design gathering steam, Janet and Larry French of Huntington Beach gazed out at their front lawn and decided to replace it. With what, they didn’t really know. So they hired Culver City designer Adam Wheeler to brainstorm a smart alternative. Wheeler, who worked for Frank Gehry before starting his firm six years ago, recognized the flat, featureless lawn for what it was: wasted space that could be more functional and attractive as an extension of the interiors. "The idea was to create an outdoor living room in the front yard,” Wheeler says. “That was the big gesture.”