# Pergolas and patio covers in Esperanza

Canonical page: https://klemabuilders.com/locations/hill-country/esperanza

Esperanza (78006) is a 1,255-acre master-planned community off Highway 46 East in Boerne's ETJ, inside Kendall County WCID No. 2A, on Boerne water and sewer over the Trinity Aquifer; under its 2008 development agreement every lot takes a City of Boerne building permit, the Esperanza Community Association's Architectural Control Committee approves first within 30 days, and wood fencing is prohibited in favor of black steel picket or masonry. Klema Builders files both and builds fixed-price.

Esperanza (Boerne neighborhood), ZIP 78006. Master-planned community off Highway 46 East on the east edge of Boerne, in the city's ETJ.

## Starting price

A 16x30 basic wood deck with handrails in Esperanza, Boerne starts at $4,000, labor and materials included.

## What we build here

- [Pergolas](https://klemabuilders.com/pergolas): Cedar, aluminum, louvered and bioclimatic.
- [Covered Patios](https://klemabuilders.com/covered-patios): Match-the-house roofs for year-round shade.
- [Custom Decks](https://klemabuilders.com/decks): Composite, cedar, multi-level and pool decks.
- [Fencing](https://klemabuilders.com/fencing): Cedar privacy, horizontal board, and wrought iron.

## Building in Esperanza

- **ZIP and place** (78006, Kendall County): About 1,255 acres and 2,480 planned lots off State Highway 46 East, roughly three miles east of downtown Boerne, developed by The Lookout Group from a 2014 concept plan, with Browns Creek and Spring Creek crossing it. Outside Boerne's city limits but inside its ETJ, and inside Kendall County Water Control and Improvement District No. 2A, which the city may annex without a vote. Herff Elementary opened on site in 2019; The Club, the lazy river and more than 20 miles of trails are the amenities.
- **Permit desk** (City of Boerne, by development agreement): The 2008 development agreement between the City of Boerne and the developer makes every lot take a City of Boerne building permit and certificate of occupancy regardless of the city line, and it pulls in the city's building regulations, flood damage protection, tree preservation and outdoor lighting ordinances. Boerne's permit FAQ says arbors, gazebos and decks need a permit and a fence needs a permit with a site plan; the city publishes no size or height exemption for decks. The city's 2026 permit reports show fence and accessory permits issued on Esperanza streets.
- **HOA review** (Esperanza Community Association ACC): The Esperanza Community Association, managed by Goodwin & Company, runs the Architectural Control Committee (called the Architectural Review Board on its site). Its declaration lists fences, patios, decks, gazebos, awnings, sheds, pools, walkways and exterior light fixtures as improvements that need approval, review takes up to 30 days, and an application with no answer in 30 days counts as denied. The ACC approves in writing first; only then do the plans go to the city. There are fifteen village declarations, so the one for your village is read before the design is drawn.
- **Fence rules**: Solid wood fencing is prohibited to protect the viewscapes. A perimeter fence is black see-through steel picket, commonly called wrought iron, with nothing attached to the pickets for screening; privacy comes from a living fence of five-foot pickets with vines or native plantings. Walls are allowed only with specific ACC approval, in limestone, stucco or approved natural rock matching the house and not blocking views. Lots on the community boundary already carry a builder-installed five-foot steel picket fence.
- **Setbacks and structures**: An open porch, patio, deck or balcony may extend up to 7 feet into the front or rear setback and can never be enclosed; the principal rear setback is 20 feet on Town, Traditional and Manor lots and 25 on Estate lots. A detached accessory structure sits behind the house, up to 15 feet tall and one story, in the same masonry and colors, and sheds are built on site on a slab. Boerne's own code lets a deck, patio, awning or pergola encroach the rear setback while keeping 10 feet to the rear line. Above-ground pools are not allowed; an in-ground pool needs a fence approved by the city and the ACC.
- **Ground and water**: Glen Rose limestone under thin soil, so pergola and cover posts are core-drilled. Trinity Aquifer, not the TCEQ-regulated Edwards zones. City of Boerne water and wastewater rather than septic, and every automatic irrigation system connects to the reclaimed-water line, never potable water. St. Augustine grass is prohibited, plantings must be drought tolerant, oak trees showing wilt must be treated promptly, and Boerne's tree preservation ordinance applies through the agreement.
- **Lots and homes**: Town, Traditional, Manor, Estate and larger lot classes, from about a fifth of an acre upward, with production and semi-custom stone-and-stucco homes by Chesmar, Highland, Drees, Perry, Scott Felder and Toll Brothers built from the mid-2010s on, and a Toll Brothers 55-plus section at Regency. Most backyards are flat and compact, which puts pergolas and patio covers ahead of raised decks.
- **Lighting**: Boerne's outdoor lighting ordinance applies through the declaration: the light source concealed in an opaque housing, no bare lamps visible from a street or a neighbor, soffit and tree lights shielded or aimed at vegetation, no colored bulbs or neon, security lights on motion detectors, all in the name of a dark-sky community. Pergola and patio-cover lighting here is specified to it.

## Why Esperanza is different

Esperanza is the rare Boerne-area community with two approvals for every backyard structure: it lies outside the city limits in a water district, but the 2008 development agreement makes the City of Boerne its permit desk, and the Esperanza Community Association's Architectural Control Committee must approve first, within 30 days, or the application is presumed denied. Its fence rule is the strictest in the area: no wood at all, only black steel picket or masonry, with privacy grown as a living fence.

Klema Builders draws the pergola, patio cover or deck to the 7-foot setback allowance and the accessory limits, specifies dark-sky lighting to Boerne's ordinance, submits to the ACC, files the city permit, and quotes fixed-price after a free in-home consult.

## Questions and answers

### Do I need a permit for a pergola, patio cover or deck in Esperanza?

Yes, two approvals. Esperanza is outside Boerne's city limits, but its 2008 development agreement makes every lot take a City of Boerne building permit, and Boerne's FAQ lists arbors, gazebos and decks as permitted work with no size exemption published. Before the city sees it, the Esperanza Architectural Control Committee has to approve the plans in writing, within 30 days. Klema Builders prepares the ACC submission, then files the city permit with the site plan.

### Can I build a cedar privacy fence in Esperanza?

No. Esperanza's declaration prohibits wood fencing to protect the views. A fence is black steel picket, the kind people call wrought iron, with nothing attached to the pickets, or a limestone, stucco or natural-rock wall matching the house with specific ACC approval. Privacy is a living fence: five-foot pickets with vines or native plantings. Klema Builders builds the steel picket or the wall, submits it to the ACC, and files the city fence permit with a site plan.

### How much does a deck, pergola or covered patio cost in Esperanza?

A 16x30 basic wood deck with handrails in Esperanza, Boerne starts at $4,000, labor and materials included. Covered patios, pergolas, composite and multi-level decks are quoted fixed-price, line by line, after a free in-home consult. The written quote arrives within 3 to 5 business days.

### How far can a patio or deck reach into the setback here?

Seven feet into the front or rear setback, as long as the extension has no walls and is never enclosed; the rear setback for the house itself is 20 feet on most lots and 25 on Estate lots. A detached structure goes behind the house, no more than 15 feet tall and one story, in the same masonry and colors. Klema Builders draws the site plan to those lines and Boerne's 10-foot rear-line rule before the ACC sees it.

### Why is the Esperanza ACC review before the city permit?

Because the declaration says every improvement needs the ACC's written approval before any construction activity begins, and only then may the plans go to the City of Boerne for the permit. Silence is not consent: an application with no answer in 30 days is presumed denied, which is why the packet is complete the first time, with the site plan, materials, colors, lighting and the fence detail.

### Do you handle the permit and the design review in Esperanza?

Yes. In Esperanza that means the Architectural Control Committee submission under your village's declaration first, then the City of Boerne building permit, and the fence permit with a site plan for any fence. We prepare the drawings, the site plan and the material list, file the application, and handle the back-and-forth; the permit and the review are line items in the quote. Every project starts with a free in-home consult and a fixed-price quote line by line within 3 to 5 business days, and we build across San Antonio, the Texas Hill Country and the I-35 corridor to Austin.

### How long does a project take in Esperanza?

A cedar pergola is built in 1 to 2 weeks on site once materials and approvals are in hand. A composite or cedar deck takes 3 to 6 weeks from signed contract to walk-through once the permit clears, and a multi-level or pool deck 6 to 10 weeks. ACC review takes up to 30 days, then City of Boerne permit review of 1 to 3 weeks. The schedule is committed in writing in the contract.

### What does it cost to take down an old pergola or deck in Esperanza?

A 12x12 pergola removal in Esperanza, Boerne starts at $3,750, haul-away and yard grading included. Decks, patio covers, fences, sheds, hot tubs and playsets are taken down in 1 to 3 business days, hauled off and the ground graded or raked. Concrete footings and any siding or stucco repair at the ledger are handled separately. Already tore it down yourself? We haul off the pile.

## Nearby pages

- [Decks in Boerne](https://klemabuilders.com/decks/boerne)
- [Fencing in Boerne](https://klemabuilders.com/fencing/boerne)
- [Cordillera Ranch](https://klemabuilders.com/locations/hill-country/cordillera-ranch)
- [Tapatio Springs](https://klemabuilders.com/locations/hill-country/tapatio-springs)
- [Anaqua Springs Ranch](https://klemabuilders.com/locations/san-antonio/anaqua-springs-ranch)
- [Texas Hill Country](https://klemabuilders.com/locations/hill-country)

## Contact

- Phone: (210) 974-1420 (Monday to Friday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Saturday 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM)
- Email: hello@klemabuilders.com
- Based in: San Antonio, TX
- Service area: San Antonio, the Texas Hill Country and the I-35 corridor to Austin
- Free in-home consult, fixed-price quote line by line within 3 to 5 business days.
- Get a quote: https://klemabuilders.com/get-quote