Hill Country Water Gardens & Nursery — Attraction in Cedar Park

(Warning to anyone thinking of giving HCWG their business that have medical conditions that prevent them from wearing a mask.)

Let me start by saying I rarely write reviews. This one was needed. I've been a customer of HCWG for 7 years since I moved into the area. Loyal customer, never had any problems with them...until this incident.

Today, March 16th I pull up at HCWG. There is a guy in the parking lot gate. I'm assuming he's there for masks. I walk up to him from a distance and tell him about my lung condition and that I can't wear a mask. He says and I quote, "That's fine, I'll let the other employees know. *He has a walkie talkie.

So, I proceed inside the nursery. I walk around the entire nursery looking at plants like I usually do. I even had one younger male employee helping me find a specific plant I was looking for. I made the 20 minute drive up from Travis county for this plant. He was nice and helpful, but that's where the good service ended.

After about 30 minutes a woman employee with short hair comes up to me and says, "You need to wear a mask."

I tell her my condition, same as the guy at the parking lot front gate. She says without hesitation, "I'm going to ask you to leave if you won't wear a mask." Like she didn't hear me that I said, "I can't medically wear a mask, it obstructs my airway." I tell her, "Go get the owner."

The owner, "Steve" comes up to me and says the same thing after I tell him my condition. I explain to him that not only did one of his employees tell me it was okay to enter, but that his face mask sign that says, "No exceptions" is a violation of federal civil rights law, the Americans with Disabilities Act.

He states, "No sir, this is private property."

I tell him, "No sir, you're incorrect. One this is an OUTDOOR business and I kept my distance from people. Two, I know the law, my rights and have been into many businesses in the last year without a mask. You're the first one trying to kick me out for a medical condition. You may have private property rights to ask customers to wear a mask, but you are not above the law. You're a business open to the public. Which means you can't medically discriminate. That is illegal."

He didn't care. What this owner did is no different than someone in a wheelchair coming into his business and him requiring them to stand in order to shop there. Every local and state mandate in the country has exemptions for those with medical conditions for this very reason. This owner broke the law today.

So, having said that, I will be seeking legal avenues against this company for violations of the ADA. Violations of this federal civil rights act come with fines from $75,000 to $100,000 for each violation. From reading comments online about this business, he's done this before to not just me.

I would no longer recommend this business as well. I've never experienced treatment like that from a business in my over 40 years on this...

We stopped by here to get some fish for my kiddos to take to their grandparents pond. The fish barn was the most unorganized operation I’ve seen in quite a while. It took an hour to get out of there! One person would start helping, then have to go do something, then another one, and another one. There was a new guy, who was super nice and trying his best, but sorta left alone without proper training. It was such a cluster, one of the guys walked off with 2 of our fish and gave to another customer, who left with our fish…so we had to wait through the whole process of catching and bagging (and rebagging) the fish. They sorta laughed about it amongst them and never apologized. The last guy we dealt with in the fish barn asked if we had our ticket yet - and we said No - he said ‘do you know how much they cost’? Since he hadn’t actually been the one helping to get the fish, we then had to go back through with him and look at each bag and try to find which tank it was in to determine how much they cost. What should have been a 15 minute stop to grab some fish turned into an extremely frustrating HOUR. Zero focus on customer experience from we could tell. Each of the guys were individually nice, just clearly aren’t trained on making sure the client is having a decent experience. I told my husband I had never seen so many employees doing so little work. Lots of groups standing around talking. My husband is a very patient person and rarely gets annoyed with bad service - and he was so frustrated. Won’t be back here. My recommendation to the owners would be to train one person to stick with each customer from...

Hill Country Water Gardens and John Dukes deserve a heartfelt shoutout for their outstanding customer service and support.

I started my search for a fountain about a year ago, and a couple of friends recommended Hill Country Water Gardens. I’m so glad they did. From the moment I first visited, I was in awe - their grounds are stunning, with an amazing selection of fountains, natural water features, garden art, statuary, plants, fish, and water lilies. That’s also when I met John Dukes, their fountain specialist.

It took me a long time to decide exactly what type of fountain I wanted, and John was incredibly patient, kind, knowledgeable, and responsive. He took the time to answer all my questions, explain options, and guide me through the process with care. His support and expertise made all the difference during my long search - truly top-notch customer service.

With John’s help, I placed a special order for a beautiful Campania wall fountain. After it was delivered at Hill Country Water Gardens they unpacked it to ensure nothing was broken, and all of the parts were accounted for. My landscaper picked it up and installed it. My husband and I absolutely love our new fountain- it’s perfect! Thank you, John!!!!

If you’re considering a fountain, natural water feature, or anything garden/plant related, I highly recommend Hill Country Water Gardens. Needless to say, if you're searching for a water feature be sure to ask...