Western Timber Frame™ designs, engineers, and builds custom timber frame pergolas, pavilions, and outdoor living structures across Highland, Utah. Every structure is engineered to the specific lot: its soil, its grade, its snow and wind load, and the way you use the space.
18+
Years
7000+
Projects
50
States
28
Awards
Designed and Built in Utah — Under an Hour Away
Our structures are made in Utah — designed, engineered, and CNC-cut at our facility in Payson, under an hour away. Every one of the 7,000+ structures we’ve delivered nationwide since 2008 started as raw timber on that shop floor.
For a Highland buyer, that means an in-person consultation, timber cut in-state, and real joinery you can drive to before you commit. We’ve built here, too, including the poolside pergola, the stepped deck pergola, and the white Tuscany pergola pictured on this page.
It’s also why the U.S. Small Business Administration named us the 2026 SBA Utah District Manufacturing Small Business of the Year.
Designing Timber Structures for Highland’s Climate & Lifestyle
Highland sits at about 4,875 feet on a bench at the mouth of American Fork Canyon, and the city’s history notes its brisk north winds and winter snowdrifts. The Utah Snow Load Study map puts ground snow loads across Highland at roughly 37 to 43 psf, rising with elevation, and Highland City requires new submittals to meet the 2021 IRC and 2024 codes as of July 1, 2026. NOAA’s 1991–2020 climate normals for nearby Alpine show an average July high of about 90°F and about 74 inches of snow a year, so a structure has to handle both summer sun and real winter snow.
Highland’s accessory building help sheet sets a 25-foot height limit, 10-foot rear and side setbacks, 20 feet on a side that abuts a street, a 30-foot front setback, and at least 6 feet between the structure and the house, measured from the roof overhang. Accessory buildings are capped at 5% to 7% of the lot area depending on zone, and the city’s permit list requires a building permit for porch and patio covers and for accessory buildings larger than 200 square feet. We work through those requirements with you during design, before a single beam is cut.
Our standard engineering starts at 115 mph. Where the project requires a higher design wind speed, the structure is engineered for that requirement. We also engineer to your lot’s real snow load, soil, and exposure.
Neighborhoods we design for:
Large lots on the Highland bench
Highland’s residential zones start at 20,000-square-foot minimum lots, leaving room for pavilions, pool pergolas, and detached structures sized to the yard.
Homes near American Fork Canyon
East-side lots closer to the canyon mouth, where north winds, higher snow, and mountain views shape the footing and roof design.
Pool yards and family gathering spaces
Backyards built around a pool or deck, where a pergola shades the water or the hot tub without crowding the yard, like the projects pictured on this page.
Highland grew from homesteads on the bench and incorporated in 1977. Today the city counts 25 parks and 18.4 miles of trails, including Highland Glen Park with its pond, pavilion, and bike park, and the Murdock Canal Greenway. A timber structure earns its place here by fitting that setting and standing up to real snow, wind, and summer sun. For statewide engineering and climate detail, see our Utah timber structures page.
Structures We Build in Highland
Every structure is a Custom-Engineered Kit — purpose-built for your space, architecture, and lot.
Custom Pergolas: Best Fit For Highland
With July highs near 90°F and long summer evenings, a Highland patio needs shade that actually works. A pergola has to deliver real shade and read as a permanent part of the home, not a mail-order add-on, whether it shades a pool, a raised deck, or a patio facing the Wasatch. That’s where custom engineering separates from a catalog cover.
Many aluminum and light-frame pergola kits provide significantly less coverage, while our ShadePrint™ approach measures actual coverage and can reach 80–85%, varying by orientation and time of day. Unlike metal, timber has low thermal conductivity, so it doesn’t heat the skin as quickly in the sun and surfaces stay more comfortable to the touch. Engineered for Highland’s bench lots and summer sun, the Dovetail Difference® interlocks the timbers without metal brackets or exposed fasteners, with no visible hardware to loosen. Add lighting and power through TimberVolt® — engineered in, not bolted on.
Hear a Highland homeowner explain why she started with one section of shade over her pool instead of covering it all, the pergola pictured at the top of this page:
The same craftsmanship scales up: Highland’s businesses, parks, and event venues use commercial timber pavilions to turn a patio into a year-round, instantly recognizable space.
Our Timber Frame Design & Build Process in Highland
Design Consultation
In person or remote, designed around your lot, home, and views.
Engineering for Highland Conditions
Engineered to your lot’s soil, grade, snow load, and wind, based on the specific conditions of your property. We provide engineering documentation to support permitting and stamped drawings prepared by a licensed engineer where the project and jurisdiction require them.
Fabrication & Quality Control
Every timber is cut in-house at our own Payson shop, on CNC machinery we own and run ourselves — not sent out to a third-party fabricator. That means the same team that engineers your Highland structure also cuts it, with one line of control and accountability from design to delivery.
Warranty Coverage
Every Western Timber Frame structure carries a limited structural warranty. Length runs from 3 years on Deck Structures to 25 years on the 12K Series, based on the series you purchase.
Delivery & Installation Support
Ships as a Custom-Engineered Kit with complete instructions; DIY-friendly, or we can coordinate installation support.
We build around local permitting, including Highland’s accessory building setbacks, lot coverage limits, and patio cover permits.
Also Serving the Areas Around Highland
We serve homeowners and businesses across:
FAQs About Timber Structures in Highland, Utah
What Our Clients Say About Us
2026 SBA Utah District Manufacturing Small Business of the Year
National recognition for excellence in craftsmanship, client service, and small business leadership.
National Timber Frame Expertise, Built in Utah
With 28 Best of State Awards, multiple Inc. 5000 honors, an HGTV Design Excellence Award, the 2026 SBA Utah District Manufacturing Small Business of the Year, and 7,000+ structures built nationwide since 2008, Western Timber Frame designs and builds custom, structural, real-wood timber structures for homeowners and commercial clients who want true craftsmanship, not off-the-shelf catalog designs.
Send us your project details, and we’ll design a structure purpose-built for your Highland property.