Coastal Source delivers discreet outdoor lighting and audio for an urban oasis
MOORESTOWN, NEW JERSEY, August 22, 2024 – When landscape architecture and construction experts at Ledden Palimeno were tasked with adding discreet lighting and audio to the compact, walled garden of a historic 19th-century townhouse, they knew Coastal Source’s attractive, high-performance outdoor speakers and lights were the ideal choice for a solution that would withstand the elements for years to come.
“This was a tricky project because the outdoor space is long and narrow,” says Joe Palimeno, owner and principal landscape architect at Ledden Palimeno Landscape Co. “It’s a small space, and Coastal Source’s wide selection of amenities really allowed us to customize this design.”
Ledden Palimeno worked closely with Coastal Source to design the layout of the property, with the property owner bringing his own skills as a landscape architect to the plantings and water features – the latter of which Joe contributed to. Wanting to enhance and expand his outdoor experiences with Coastal Source and realize the full potential of his historic property, the owner also separately commissioned custom-made planters, urns, a fountain and an archway, repeating the arch motif from inside the home.
“The house was built in 1837,” Palimeno continued. “Because of the original foundations and layout, there is only a tiny space in the floor to run plumbing, lighting wires, audio wires, irrigation wires, network wires, etc. We drew up the initial plan and then sent it to the folks at Coastal Source, who drew it up. They came up with a really good plan for the wiring because we had specified so many speakers – we put a lot of thought into exactly how they would connect to the amplifier. We had a lot of plumbing and had to create a plumbing plan, in an order that was exactly what we wanted.”
The design and construction had to be incredibly discreet: lighting and speaker units were placed behind plants and pots, and Well Light units were even seamlessly integrated into the wooden lattice. The intention was for subtle lighting effects to highlight the planting and the beauty of the nearly 200-year-old building without dominating it. It was also important that the lighting and sound systems were robust enough to withstand the elements – which is no problem at Coastal Source, as the company’s products are lab-tried and field-tested.
Pictures of the property show how the lighting and speaker systems – including Coastal Source’s innovative 8.0 Mini Ellipse Bollard, 10.0 Bollard Subwoofer, Flex Double Tiered Path Light and the aforementioned Well Lights, to name a few (The full list of product specifications can be found below.) – are discreetly placed to preserve the natural surroundings and the facade of the historic building. Even though they are visible, their innovative, subtle yet simple designs complement the outdoor living area and the 19th century brickwork.
“The client wanted to light the facade,” Palimeno emphasized. “They had put a lot of work into the historic renovation of this house and really wanted to showcase that with discreet, subtle lighting. They were blown away that we could offer indirect lighting and the space wasn’t just flooded with light.”
The owner wanted the outdoor space – his “little backyard” – to be functional for daily family life and for visiting friends. Previously heavily planted, it was to be opened up for entertaining, with pavers, seating and more functional planting. Ledden Palimeno was part of a large team of tradesmen brought in to meet the owner’s demanding requirements.
When it comes to audio quality, Joe Palimeno was keen to retain the Coastal Source product line for the project because of the company’s unique innovations in design, engineering and integration. However, he admitted that while he is an expert in landscape architecture design and construction, he is not an audiophile.
“I know my limitations,” he said. “Landscape, lighting – I can light that. But when it comes to sound, I’m not an expert – Coastal Source is the expert and I prefer to bring them in as specialists. For every lighting job we’ve sold with audio, we’ve gotten an audio demo from Coastal Source and this project was no different.”
The homeowner knew exactly what he wanted from the sound system – “he has a pretty good ear for it,” says Palimeno. He had previously had an outdoor sound system, but wasn’t particularly happy with it. But it was only after talking to friends that he came across the team at Coastal Source – who ultimately suggested he hand the project over to Ledden Palimeno.
“I’ve always had audio outside because I spend so much time there,” commented the owner. “I like to work outside on my laptop with music and also relax at the end of the day with a cigar. I always have music on. We have friends in Society Hill who had Coastal Source do the lighting in their backyard and they said we should check it out. At the time, I didn’t even know Coastal Source did audio – I just thought they were doing the lighting part of the project.”
After Palimeno came on board and suggested that Coastal Source be considered for the audio component of the project, he commissioned the client to perform an audio demo. It didn’t take much convincing from Coastal Source’s demo team that the audio solution was ideal for the space. Once the solution was specified and installed, only minor adjustments were required after installation.
“The customer didn’t want it to be too bass heavy, but he wanted real bass,” he said. “He was really cool to work with, but after we installed the system, a few weeks went by and he wasn’t 100% happy with the sound. Coastal Source visited the facility and made some adjustments to the amplifier settings, which slightly reduced the amount of bass. The customer could clearly hear the difference and said, ‘That’s it!'”
He explained that the support Coastal Source provides – to him as a preferred dealer and also to the customer – is the main reason he continues to use the brand for his landscaping projects.
“Demo, follow-up, design – and fine-tuning the audio,” he added. “Support is so important; we don’t buy on price, we buy on value. Coastal Source does a great job and we’ve been a dealer for almost seven years!”
The client is very happy with the project and his decision to choose Coastal Source – especially with the impressive variety of lighting fixtures the company can offer and their discreet nature.
“I have no complaints,” he said. “Joe was one of the few contractors — and I can’t tell you how many contractors have been involved in this area! — who didn’t say, ‘We can’t do that’ or ‘I don’t think that will work.’ I think the combination of different lights that Coastal Source offers is impressive — you can have architectural uplights, directional task lighting, path lighting and tree lighting. You can mix and match the lights however you want. It’s worked out really well. Everything is very discreet, and as the plants get even fuller, it will be even more discreet.”
Palimeno is also impressed with his work and the space in general, pointing to the “tiny details” that make it so special and the “amazing products” he was able to work with to make the project a reality.
“From an installation standpoint, it couldn’t have been easier,” he enthused. “Plug and play: Coastal Source’s products install so quickly! No on-site splicing – that’s the difference between them and the company’s competitors.”
The Coastal Source Plug+Play™ system is a patented cabling technology and end-to-end systemization that is not only fast and reliable, but also makes setup simpler and more accessible, with easy integration into existing systems while delivering high-performance results.
“And here, with the architecture, it was easy to make the lighting shine. Sometimes you look at a house and think about what features to highlight, so you tend to light the shrubbery from above. This was more about the house and how we would bring its features to life. Lighting brings spaces to life,” he concluded.
Product specification list:
Audio
Coastal Source SAS600/4 outdoor amplifier with SONOS
Coastal Source 8.0 Mini Ellipse Bollard
Coastal Source 10.0 Bollard Subwoofer
lighting
Coastal Source Flex Two-Stage Path Light
Coastal Source niche pendant lamp
Coastal Source Niche Bullet Light
Coastal Source Flex Bullet Uplight – MR11
Coastal Spring Washlight
Coastal Spring Fountain Light
Click here to download images.
About Ledden Palimeno
Designing and building interesting and challenging landscapes and working with appreciative and trusting clients is what drives owner and landscape architect Joe Palimeno and gives him passion for his work. Over the years, Joe has honed his skills in the design-build residential market, specializing in building functional and usable outdoor living spaces. Joe is a multiple award winner at the Philadelphia International Flower Show and the Singapore Garden Festival. His accomplishments include Best of Show honors at both events, the Governor’s Award in Philadelphia, and Gold and Silver awards in Singapore. Joe has also been recognized by NALP (formerly PLANET), receiving the Grand Award, as well as awards and merits for many of his design-build projects. For more information, visit www.leddenpalimeno.com
About Coastal Source
Coastal Source’s outdoor audio and lighting products are built with integrity, use innovative design to solve real-world problems, and endure intensive environmental testing to produce the most reliable, high-performance outdoor audio and lighting system available on the market today. With more than 60 years of hands-on industry experience, Coastal Source is pioneering solutions that help families share fun and memorable moments in their own great outdoors. For more information, visit www.coastalsource.com
