Home › Portfolio › Retaining Walls and a Fire Pit Patio in Bellevue, WA
Sta-Built Construction rebuilt a bare, sloped backyard in Bellevue, WA between November and December 2025. The project put Belgard Diamond Pro retaining walls along the fence lines, a large paver patio off the sliding door, a raised fire pit terrace, block planters, and a grid of 2 by 2 foot step stones set in river rock. The crew photos run from the first wall courses on November 6 to the finished yard on December 29.
Project Details
- Location: Bellevue, WA
- Service: Full backyard build: retaining walls, paver patio, fire pit terrace, planters, and step stones
- Existing condition: Bare dirt yard sloping up to the fence lines
- Retaining walls: Belgard Diamond Pro (smooth) in Rio with Dark Charcoal caps, per the design sheet
- Main patio: Papyrus pavers in Scandina Grey, 3-piece pattern, with a sailor border of Dimensions 3×9 in Midnight inside and Dimensions 6×12 in Scandina outside (126 ft 6 in of border on the design sheet)
- Fire pit terrace: Belgard Dimensions 12 in Rio with a double sailor border of Dimensions 6×9, and a fire pit kit
- Step stones: 24 Belgard 2×2 ft step stones set 6 in apart in river rock, per the design sheet
- Built: November 6 to December 29, 2025 (crew photos)
- Project investment range: $81,600 to $128,300
- Warranty: 17-Year Craftsmanship Warranty on the walls; 27-Year Craftsmanship Warranty on the pavers; no warranty on the fire pit
Before and after
The problem
The backyard was bare dirt from the house to the fence lines. To level it, the design called for retaining walls along the back and side fences, holding back soil up to about 3 feet. The design sheet also notes one short wall run kept above grade to hold back the neighbor’s side, about 1 foot high.
The solution
The design sheet lays out retaining walls along the back and side fences, marked at about 52 feet 6 inches with a 2 foot 6 inch average height on one run and about 32 feet 6 inches with a 3 foot average on the other. Inside the walls, a large patio runs off the sliding glass door. Near the garage door, a raised terrace holds the fire pit, with steps down to the main patio. Two block planters, an oval and a long rectangle, sit at the edge of the patio, and the side yard gets a grid of step stones in river rock.
The materials
The job’s records hold no itemized material list, so the products here come from the design sheet photographed into the job file. The walls are Belgard Diamond Pro with a smooth face in Rio, capped in Dark Charcoal. The main patio is Papyrus pavers in Scandina Grey in a 3-piece pattern, framed by a sailor border with Dimensions 3×9 in Midnight on the inside and Dimensions 6×12 in Scandina on the outside. The fire pit terrace is Belgard Dimensions 12 in Rio with a double sailor border of Dimensions 6×9. The step stones are Belgard 2×2 slabs.
How it was built
The first courses of wall block were in by November 6, set along the fence lines on a gravel base. By November 12 the crew had run black drain pipe behind the base course along the fence and was building the walls up.
This was a November job, and the photos show it. On November 14 and 18, standing water covered much of the yard below the new walls. By November 20 the ground was graded and dry enough for base work, and the patio pavers were down by December 15, along with the fire pit terrace.
The planters, river rock, and step stones went in by December 23, and the yard was cleaned and finished on December 29.
The finished result
The sloped dirt yard is now level, held by walls on two sides, with a patio off the house, a fire pit terrace a few steps up, two planters, and a step stone path through river rock.
What a project like this costs
Project investment range: $81,600 to $128,300. This range reflects the scope of this completed project and is not a current quote.
This is a whole-yard build, and the walls drive the price: about 85 feet of retaining wall along two fence lines on the design sheet, plus the shorter walls that form the terrace and planters. The patio area, two border styles, the fire pit, and the step stones add to it, and the work ran almost two months, through a wet November. The range covers the original contract and excludes a later $1,000 change order.
See more on our retaining wall page, paver patio page, and fire pit page, and our Bellevue service area. Related projects: a paver patio and back wall beside a pool in Bellevue and a curved grade wall and patio in Beaverton.
Related questions
What does a backyard with retaining walls and a patio cost in Bellevue, WA?
This project came in between $81,600 and $128,300, covering retaining walls along two fence lines, a large paver patio, a fire pit terrace, two block planters, and a step stone path. The range reflects this completed project and is not a current quote.
What materials were used?
Per the design sheet: Belgard Diamond Pro wall block in Rio with Dark Charcoal caps, Papyrus pavers in Scandina Grey with Dimensions 3×9 Midnight and Dimensions 6×12 Scandina borders, Belgard Dimensions 12 in Rio with a Dimensions 6×9 double border on the fire pit terrace, and Belgard 2×2 step stones in river rock.
Can retaining walls be built in a Northwest winter?
This one was. The walls went in during early November, and the photos show standing water across the yard on November 14 and 18. Base work waited until the ground was graded on November 20, and the patio was laid in mid December.
How long did the project take?
The crew photos run from the first wall courses on November 6, 2025, through the patio and fire pit terrace on December 15 and the planters and step stones on December 23, to the finished yard on December 29.
Planning something similar?
If your yard slopes up to the fence and you want flat space to use, Sta-Built can walk it with you and lay out walls, patio, and paths that fit. Schedule a free design consultation.
This project documentation was prepared by Sta-Built Construction from the project records and photos from our crew, November 2026. Technical review by Ben Metsker, Manager.