It was a lucky day when I found Urban Renewal (Matt) on Craigslist. He has completely transformed my yard from what was a white-trash-overgrown with weeds dirt patch TO an amazing and beautifully landscaped garden. Matt worked with me to design what I wanted, incorporating personal elements ( sculptures and other weird yard art) and created a yard that is now a showcase. He is very reasonably priced- he helped me source plants and trees on sale, saving me $$. He knows his plants and how they will grow in your space. He is truely gifted and easy to work with. If you are looking to transform any outdoor space- be it a deck, a yard or porch, Matt is your man. read more

I called Urban Renewal seeking landscaping design for my home. Matt responded and made an appointment to meet me to discuss the project. Matt never showed up for the appointment and has not responded to my followup call asking why. I was looking forward to meeting Matt based on other Yelp reviews, but he dropped the ball so I will need to use another landscape designer. read more

We couldn't be happier with Matt's work on our Logan Square front and side yards. From the first meeting, I appreciated how he listened to our needs in terms of the scope, budget and style. He is incredibly knowledgeable about plants and suggested off the top of his head a number of species that would fit. Sure enough when he sent over the proposal it was exactly what we had in mind but even better! After a couple of rounds of revisions he planted and hardscaped the entire project in a week, right on schedule. Matt has a great intuition when it comes to composition and design and worked with us to tweak the design mid-planting based on how everything was coming together on site. On the last day when we came home from work and saw the final product I just felt so lucky that we had the good fortune to find him. And to top it all off, Matt is just a really nice guy which made the entire working process easy and enjoyable. If you are looking for an honest and talented landscaper, then look no further than Urban Renewal Garden Design! read more

Urban Garden Design - View from the back of the house - we love the bed of slate chips that Matt suggested! - Landscaping Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

I really liked Matt, but unfortunately he dropped the ball. We had gotten one estimate and when we needed changes, he ignored us. We really looked forward to working with a local company, but we had to seek out another landscape designer to finish a project. For what it's worth, Matt is knowledgable about plants. read more

If you live in the Chicagoland area and looking for a a landscape designer, Urban Renewal is the way to go. Matt was honest, professional and really understood and respected our budget restrictions. Matt was more resourceful than we had ever imagined and looked at alternatives to transforming our backyard. After working with Matt, I'm sure that we could not have found anyone more helpful, reliable and honest to work with. read more

I found Matt on Yelp and I'm so glad that I did. He was prompt with any appointments and very responsive in providing the plan and revisions for our association approval. I gave him a general idea of what I as looking for and the colors that I like and he took it from there. We met a couple of times to revise and add a couple of things (irrigation system/lighting) and then we set up the date for the installation. My new yard looks spectacular. It is everything that I had envisioned and then some. The colors are beautiful and Matt made sure to choose plants that will provide color and interest throughout the year. I would highly recommend Matt and Urban Renewal. His pricing is very reasonable and he is just really nice to work with. read more

Matt did a FANTASTIC job with our back and side yard landscaping. He worked with me to design something that I was totally excited about. And he worked hard to keep costs down for us too. He did a TON of work, for a very reasonable price (much less than the two other quotes I go). And his work was FANTASTIC. He even did a little hardscape as well as all the plants/flowers. We are thrilled with how things came out. And we are going to ask him to come back and do our front landscape asap. Would HIGHLY recommend Matt. read more

Matt was great . . .responsive, hard working and had some nice ideas that worked well in my garden.

We are very happy with Urban Renewal and Matt's work. We have an 11 by 14 foot area in our front yard and we were struggling to make it look nice. I called Matt and he was able to schedule a last minute consultation despite being busy during the spring landscaping season. He arrived on time, had great ideas, an extensive knowledge on the types of plants and designs that could work in our shady area, and provided a rough quote on the spot. He also wanted to reuse anything we had that was healthy to make the work as economical as possible. Later in the week, Matt sent a more exact estimate with a price breakdown, a drawing of the space, and what he wanted to do with it - a very helpful visual. He was more than happy to make changes and discuss concerns we had. The end result is fantastic. Our yard looks clean, professional, and colorful. Thanks! read more

My condo association hired Matt this summer to landscape our previously sad-looking front yard, and he did a fabulous job! He really listened to what we wanted and gave us an attractive, low-maintenance design at a great price. He was very responsive both before and after the work was done, and responded promptly to all of our follow-up questions regarding care and maintenance. I would highly recommend him to anyone looking for landscape services. Our yard now looks great! read more

Matt did a fantastic job with our small outdoor area in front of our condo unit. He was super responsive via email and was on time for both our initial meeting and for the actual landscaping work. He had great ideas for what to plant in our shaded, small area, and really transformed the space. We definitely recommend Urban Renewal! read more

Came across working on a neighbor's landscaping, looked great and ended up hiring Matt with Urban Renewal. Helped me design for a small area in front and back of house. Couldn't be happier! Great price, amazing Hostas that quickly bloomed, beautiful Hydrangea, perfect Boxwood's and several other's. Quick turnaround. Highly recommend!!! read more

Typically I would never write a review, but I felt one was in order after the experience I had with Matt and Urban Renewal. To make a long story short, I suddenly found myself with a free weekend and took it upon myself to do something about the weed covered dirt mound in the front of my house that I and my neighbors had just come to accept. I was suddenly faced with a plethra of problems........the first being where to begin. I had received Matt's # through a co-worker who is a "friend of a friend" about a year previous and thought what the hell, I might as well see what he's all about and at least get a quote. Not only did Matt clear up his -HOLIDAY- weekend on extremely short notice but he also made his way to the south side that same afternoon so we could discusses some of my Ideas in person. That following morning Matt personally took me to the nursery to look at and discuss possible planting combinations. Not only did Matt listen to my Ideas but he explained why certain plants would and would not work in my space. (sunlight, ect.ect.) Matt took my ideas and turned them into something beyond my expectations. I could not be more pleased with the way Matt conducted himself and his business, this man surley knows his stuff and has a great eye for garden design. Thank you so much for the great experience and the wonderful yard. My neighbors and I love it. Worth well beyond the extremely modest price to begin with. I could not be happier. THANKS AGAIN MATT! read more