Jerry. I actually planted a crape myrtle by my pond patio but plan to keep it cut back . I love the look of them and the flowers are beautiful although messy. I don't plan to let it get so big that it will be an issue for the pond itself.
icu2 (Steve) it cost me $375 to have these 2 large trees plus 6 other much smaller ones cut down and hauled away. The guys did a fantastic job cleaning up everything that was cut - they raked, too, so not a leaf was left. I was extremely pleased with the job and will definitely hire them again to do some more tree-trimming work that needs to be done around my yard. I had gotten another quote, though, from a well-known tree guy here and he was going to charge me around $300 for each tree. The guy I hired was very good at his job, had years of experience and was an honest person. You might have to shop around some because I know costs can be very different in different areas of the country, too. I know it can be true that you "get what you paid for" but in this case, I got a great deal and was very pleased with the outcome.
Oh and thanks, all, for the nice compliments on the area - it's going to look a lot better when I get some more smaller shrubs planted in front of the fence.