Refined pool and landscape design
Elevate your expectations for how an outdoor experience can feel.
Brad Cross Watershapes designs exceptional pools and landscapes inspired by your family, your home, and the natural environment.
More information for:
Featured Projects
Our approach
Like a great symphony,
a great pool design hits exactly the right notes.
A pool and landscape design by Brad Cross Watershapes is, put simply, perfect for you. Because it’s created just for you. It’s explicitly designed to reflect who you are in every way. Our designs consider your style. Your home. Your space. And the way you and your family imagine you’ll use it.
But what makes a Brad Cross design unusually stunning is the delicate balance that it strikes. It’s simultaneously luxurious, yet understated. It’s both astonishingly beautiful, and elegantly simple. It’s constructed, yet feels comfortably at home in the natural landscape. Our refined pools and outdoor spaces take their cue from the natural world. So they’re never showy. Never brash. Never frivolous. They’re always thoughtful and intentional. Always a space you’ll be thrilled to spend time in, and proud to call your own for decades to come.
And because you don’t compromise, neither do we. We cut no corners. We take no shortcuts. Our standards are as high as yours. And we work closely with you throughout the design process. To both bring your dreams to life, and to inspire you with the true potential that we see in your space. We believe our approach and our philosophy lead to the most stunning pool and landscape work. As good as our word is, you don’t need to take it. Just look at our portfolio. Our work speaks for itself. Very eloquently, too, if we do say so ourselves.
Our Process
Fluid creativity melded with
buttoned-down professionalism.
The boldness of our designs might be surprising, but our design process is always predictable and precise. When you work with Brad Cross, you can expect a thoughtful and respectful experience – every step of the way. The entire process – from our first meeting to completed project – is comprised of three major stages, each with its own timeline and contract. Steps 1 through 5 are the design concept phase; step 6 is the working-drawing phase, where we determine exactly how to build everything and get it priced by contractors; step 7 and 8 are the site inspection and build itself. Here’s how it works.
Step One
Consultation and proposal
We kick things off with an in-person meeting at your home. This is our opportunity to meet you, tour your site, take photographs and notes, and see if there’s anything that stands out as a particular challenge. And this is your first opportunity to discuss your budget and your high-level vision for the space – show us photos you’ve found of other spaces that inspire you.
We use all this information to draft a proposal for you to consider. This proposal will include initial design budgets, an outline of project timing, and description of the project overall.
Step Two
Discovery
Once you approve the proposal, you’ll complete our in-depth questionnaire. Your answers give us an even better of idea of what your hopes and dreams are for your project. Then we take the time to closely analyze your site to uncover all the possibilities, limitations, and opportunities of your project. We literally leave no stone unturned.
Step Three
Brief
Based on our in-depth studies of your site and your answers to the questionnaire, we prepare a one-page brief that describes the project, the goals for the design concept, and a list of deliverables. This brief is an early snapshot of the entire project and will give you everything you need to proceed confidently into the design stage.
Step Four
Rough plan
Now that you and our team have a complete understanding of the scope of the project, the features, and your goals, we can start to put pencil to paper. The design process begins the old fashioned way – with hand sketches. Beginning with this loose approach allows us to constantly refine, edit, and explore every possibility. Sketches evolve from bubble diagrams to a complete concept plan, with dozens of alternatives, covering sun-studies, circulation, and viewing angles.
Step Five
Design refinement
The design journey continues based on the decisions surfaced in the rough sketches. Our team refines all the design elements of your pool and landscape plan. We bring the design to life in a colour, 3D walkthrough of your space. This is a fascinating step that gives you a nearly perfect impression of how your new space will look and feel. It’s the next best thing to being there. If this process reveals any challenges or concerns, we can address them with design edits.
Step Six
Construction plan
This step is a major one, and is best described as “how we start to turn ideas into reality.” With an approved, master plan in hand, we can now accurately itemize construction needs. We consider everything from the materials needed to the timelines required, and craft a detailed construction plan of action. We send the plans to sub-contractors for bidding. These can be contractors you had in mind, but we’re also happy to recommend contractors we think would be a good fit. We’ll help review the competitive bids with you, and help you make the final decision that's right for your project.
Step Seven
Plan submittals
We then submit your final project plans to the city in order to secure the required permits. This is critical step of course, and one for which we’re at the mercy of your local bureaucracy – most of this step involves simply waiting for the green light to proceed.
Step Eight
Quality control
Once construction begins, we don’t fade away. You remain in good hands, and your vision remains safe with us. We oversee the build itself to ensure that the intent of the plans is upheld, and quality standards are met or exceeded. Weekly site visits and communication with the contractors help make sure that the build proceeds exactly as it needs to.
Our team
degrees and certifications:
International Watershape Institution (IWI)
Verified Watershape Designer
Society of Watershape Designs (SWD)
Genesis 3
St. Francis Xavier University
Bachelor Business Administration
Featured in:
Pool & Spa Marketing
A Linear Masterpiece
Pool and Spa News
Rustic Charm
Pool and Spa News
Artistic Escape
Pool and Spa News
Divine in Vinyl
Pool and Spa News
Riverside Project
Pool and Spa News
Dieppe Contemporary
Principal
Brad Cross has been making waves in the pool business since 2004. Back then, no one thought Atlantic Canada could support more tailored, exacting, and extravagant pool work. But Brad saw the potential, and he continues to bring high-end pool and landscape design and construction methods to Atlantic Canada.
After graduating from St. FX with a business degree, Brad went to work formally in the family pool business. By this point, though, he’d already worked almost every role in the company, having been there since age 12. He quickly realized that what he wanted to do was run the company’s installation division. That’s when he noticed that Atlantic Canada was very short on high-quality pool suppliers. Everyone was offering the same standard pools, day-in, day-out, never striving to improve the designs, the personalization, or the quality. Brad knew he could do better, and offer better to his clients.
That’s when Brad discovered Genesis 3, a respected group of the best pool builders in the world. He started studying, and in 2019 became the fifth Canadian member of the elite Society of Watershape Designers. This Genesis 3 certification requires a minimum of 150 hours of coursework. He’s also one of the first members of the International Watershaping Institute, and reached the level of Verified Watershape Designer.
The folks in Genesis 3 are still shocked when Brad tells them where he lives – their members typically work in larger global centres. But Brad Cross’s work is now recognized throughout North America. So yes – you can count on him and his team to bring your vision to life – even better than you expected.
Project Manager – Waterworks Pools & Spas
Sharon Bauder
Born & raised in rural Ontario, in 2022 I moved east, settling just outside of Moncton, New Brunswick.
With over 20 years of self-taught experience specializing in high-end swimming pool & landscape design and construction, I feel I bring a keen eye for the small details. Inspired by nature, I believe design elements should make you feel good just as much as look good.
With an enthusiastic and honest approach, I look forward to working with our clients to see their blank backyard canvases become an award-winning paradise.
Although there always seems to be a home DIY project on the go consuming most of my downtime, I love to explore the pristine backcountry by ATV with my daughters and husband.
Reminded of a quote I once heard, “Design is thinking made visual” – Saul Bass. I wish I could have drawn my bio instead of writing it.
Contact Us
Please tell us a little about yourself, and what you’d like to have designed for your space. We’ll get in touch within a day or two.
Note that Brad Cross Watershapes specializes in beautiful, personalized, and luxurious pool and landscape projects with a total budget of $150,000 or more. We take on only about 20 design projects and 10 construction projects per year. So we can only respond to requests that meet our stringent project criteria.
Monday to Thursday, 9:00am to 5:00pm
Friday, 9:00am to 12:00pm
194 Killam Drive, Moncton NB
506-800-0769
