brenan-
I have some plans that might work for you. I sent you an email about this via the GardenWeb email system. Post here if you don't get it...I'll give you an alternate way to contact me.

You might check at one of your local home improvement centers. It sounds like you could either adapt a gazebo design to your purposes, or one of the garden/storage building designs. Before I start I would dig down around your patio slab and determine it's thickness. If it isn't on a footing that goes down at least a foot or two you will need to go down that deep or deeper and pour a concrete pier where ever you are going to set a 4x4. (I assume you are planning on setting your 4x4's on a post bracket anchored to the concrete with a "set" or "sleeve" bolt.) Then just build your structure on top of that. Depending upon your storage needs you might want to take three or four feet of one end and enclose it for storage, and leave the south end the way you describe. If not, it will make a nice screen house for summer night entertaining and spring greenhouse uses.

Good luck with the project.
Kevin

I looked at another topic someone posted on this forum that showed using 4mm PolyCarb panels to make a temporary greenhouse. You might want to look at it if you want removeable glazing on your garden structure.

Kevin