Like his colleague, friend, and neighbor Joseph Albano (see #43), Edward Olencki (they formed a local firm Albano & Olencki) was born in Chicago and studied architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) under Mies van der Rohe, one of the 20th century’s greatest architects. Olencki came to the University of Michigan School of Architecture in 1948 and became Dean in 1964. He spent 40 years teaching furniture design, construction methods, and architectural design—with a special interest in church architecture. Olencki designed at least four residences in the city of Ann Arbor (see #364), most of which were in collaboration with Albano. He retired in 1987 and this house remained his home until 2000.

The house is long and low with a prominent garage in the typical massing of the Mid-Century Modern style. Built into the hilly terrain of the Upper Water Hill Neighborhood, Olencki designed the house with the garage set into the hill, and a patio on top which can be accessed from the front steps and front door. Large eaves and a nearly flat roof are supported by large rafters with exposed ends. The exposed rafters frame the large plate-glass and smaller clerestory windows—design elements that are similar to Joseph Albano’s house at 1158 Pomona (see #43), leading to the speculation that the homes may have been designed by both architects. Panels on stilts cover the front facade and replace the traditional “porch.”

Return to Miller Road/Water Hill/Sunset neighborhood from Historic Ann Arbor: An Architectural Guide