Pergolas, fences and patio covers in Monte Vista
Monte Vista's 524-acre historic district requires a Certificate of Appropriateness for all exterior work, rear yards included, before the city permit.
What we build in Monte Vista
Pergolas
Cedar, aluminum, louvered and bioclimatic.
Fencing
Cedar privacy, horizontal board, and wrought iron.
Covered Patios
Match-the-house roofs for year-round shade.
Removal & Haul-Away
Decks, pergolas, sheds, fences, hot tubs, haul-away.
Starting price
16x30 basic wood deck with handrails
from$4,000
- 16 ft by 30 ft (480 sq ft)
- Basic wood, handrails
- Labor and materials
A 16x30 basic wood deck with handrails in Monte Vista, San Antonio starts at $4,000, labor and materials included. Covered patio, pergola or a bigger deck in Monte Vista? You get a fixed price in writing within 3 to 5 business days.
Price my projectBuilding in Monte Vista
San Antonio historic district north of downtown, between San Pedro and McCullough
- ZIP and place78212
- North of downtown between San Pedro and McCullough, on the ridge below Olmos Park. Fourteen subdivisions platted from 1890 to 1930 across 524 acres and about 100 blocks, in eighteen styles, with houses by Atlee Ayres, Alfred Giles and their contemporaries. Local historic district since July 17, 1975; National Register since 1998.
- Permit deskCity of San Antonio Development Services
- Inside city limits, so the permit comes from Development Services through BuildSA, after the historic approval. Every new fence is permitted; per Information Bulletin 151 a deck needs a permit when it or its roof exceeds 300 square feet or it sits over 30 inches, 48 inches and up needs an engineer's letter, and an attached patio cover is always permitted. Lighting is a separate electrical permit.
- Historic reviewOffice of Historic Preservation
- A Certificate of Appropriateness is required for all exterior modifications and repairs in the district, explicitly including side yards, rear yards and areas not visible from the street. Most items are approved administratively by staff; new construction and additions go to the Historic and Design Review Commission on the first and third Wednesdays, with applications due about 19 days ahead. Residential COAs are free, the COA issues within about 10 days of approval, and work without one draws a stop-work order and a post-work fee.
- Fence guidelinesHistoric Design Guidelines and OHP Fences Policy
- Front fences are typically capped at 4 feet and allowed only where the block historically had them; OHP names Monte Vista as a district whose long open lawns make new front fences inappropriate. Privacy fences are rear-yard only, typically 6 feet, wood, set back from the front facade. Wrought iron, painted wood picket and wood-framed cattle panel are preferred; chain link, vinyl, concrete block and Keystone block are out. Vehicle gates sit behind the front facade plane.
- Trees
- The city's heritage tree is 24 inches in trunk diameter, and a homeowner in a finished house needs no tree permit, but hired tree crews need a City of San Antonio Tree Maintenance License and the historic guidelines call for City Arborist review when a project affects mature trees. Posts and piers are laid out to the live oaks and pecans first.
- Ground
- A limestone-and-clay ridge north of downtown; the early French Place houses were built on rock foundations. Older houses here sit on pier-and-beam or shallow masonry foundations, so a pergola or cover is detailed to stand on its own piers and meet the house without loading old walls.
- Lots and homes
- Mansions and bungalows from 1890 to 1930 on city lots with deep back yards, detached garages and mature canopy. The common projects are a rear pergola or patio cover, a rear privacy fence in wood, iron along the street where the block allows it, and taking down mid-century additions that never suited the house.
Same six steps in Monte Vista
- Step 1: Consult
- Step 2: Design and scope
- Step 3: Materials
- Step 4: Permits and HOA
- Step 5: Build
- Step 6: Walk-through
What Monte Vista homeowners ask first
Do I need a Certificate of Appropriateness for a backyard pergola in Monte Vista?
Yes. The Office of Historic Preservation requires a COA for all exterior modifications in the district, and its guidance says that includes side yards, rear yards and areas not visible from the street. A rear pergola, patio cover or fence is typically approved administratively by staff rather than at a commission hearing. Klema Builders draws it to scale on the site plan with materials and finish and files the COA before the city permit.
Can I put a fence along the front of my Monte Vista lot?
Usually not. OHP's fence policy names Monte Vista as a district whose long, open front lawns make new front fences inappropriate, and where a block does have historic front fences the cap is 4 feet in iron, painted picket or similar. Rear privacy fences in wood to 6 feet, set back from the front facade, are the norm. We read the block before proposing anything.
How much time does historic review add in Monte Vista?
Administrative approvals for fences, patios and small structures typically take days. A project that goes to the Historic and Design Review Commission runs about three weeks from the application deadline to the decision, and the COA issues within about 10 days after. City permit review then typically adds 1 to 3 weeks. We file the COA first so the permit follows without a second wait.
Do you handle the permit and the design review in Monte Vista?
Yes. In Monte Vista that means the Certificate of Appropriateness with the Office of Historic Preservation first, then the building, fence or electrical permit with Development Services. 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 much does a deck, pergola or covered patio cost in Monte Vista?
A 16x30 basic wood deck with handrails in Monte Vista 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.
What does it cost to take down an old pergola or deck in Monte Vista?
A 12x12 pergola removal in Monte Vista 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.
More questions (3)Fewer questions
Can you take down an old carport or addition in the district?
Yes, with the COA first, because removing an exterior structure in a historic district is itself an exterior modification and anything visible or contributing gets an extra look. Once cleared, a wood deck, pergola, shade structure or shed under 300 square feet needs no city demolition permit and comes down in 1 to 3 business days, hauled off, the yard graded or raked. Masonry, footings and repairs to the house wall are handled separately.
How do you attach a patio cover to a 1920s house?
Carefully, and often not at all. Where the house is pier-and-beam or old masonry, the cover stands on its own piers with a flashed connection planned with the existing framing, or it is set a few inches off the wall as a freestanding structure. That reads better to OHP and keeps the load off a century-old wall.
How long does a project take in Monte Vista?
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. Historic review and the city permit run before the build starts; administrative COAs typically take days and a commission hearing about three weeks. The schedule is committed in writing in the contract.
Built for Monte Vista lots, reviewed the first time.
Free in-home consult in Monte Vista, then a written fixed-price quote in 3 to 5 business days.