Johns Creek yards: what we plan around
Johns Creek was built mostly between the 1980s and 2000s around golf courses and master-planned neighborhoods: large two-story homes on lots of a third of an acre to an acre, almost all with HOAs and architectural review. The city has about 13.5 miles of Chattahoochee River frontage, and the land drops from roughly 1,180 feet near Ocee to about 880 feet at the river. Lots near the river can be steep.
Johns Creek, Cauley Creek and other streams run through the neighborhoods, so many back yards end in a stream buffer, which limits where a patio, pool deck or wall can go.
Projects we build most in Johns Creek
- Outdoor kitchens, fireplaces and large patios.
- Retaining walls on sloped and river-side lots.
- Irrigation and lighting updates for established landscapes.
- Drainage for creek-backed yards.
Permits and rules in Johns Creek
- You need permission to remove specimen trees, or trees in a zoning buffer, stream buffer, the river corridor or another protected area. Amendments in July 2025 raised specimen sizes to 31 inches for large trees and 12 inches for small native flowering trees, stopped counting pines as specimens, and let homeowners remove some trees in immediate danger of falling on the house without a permit.
- The city requires a 50-foot undisturbed buffer plus a 25-foot setback with no hard surfaces, 75 feet in all. Retaining walls, decks and pools in that zone commonly need a Board of Zoning Appeals variance.
- Lots within 2,000 feet of the Chattahoochee fall under the Metropolitan River Protection Act, which limits clearing and paving.
- HOA architectural approval is nearly universal. Retaining walls over 4 feet need a building permit and engineering.
We check buffers, the river corridor, specimen trees and your HOA’s guidelines before we design. We last checked these rules in October 2026.
Neighborhoods we serve in Johns Creek
St. Ives, Country Club of the South, the Atlanta Athletic Club area, Rivermont, Medlock Bridge, Shakerag, Newtown, Ocee and Autrey Mill.