Glenora charm shines in home design for unique lot

Article content

A young professional couple with a passionate interest in architecture created a light-filled and sustainable home on an irregularly shaped lot in one of Edmonton’s oldest and most sought-after neighbourhoods, with the help of the owner’s father, a retired architect, and the build and design team at Alloy Homes.

“It was really important for us to create a calming space for us to come home to,” says the owner, Sophia Dobrowolski. Both she and her husband, Peter Dobrowolski, are physicians and work long hours; they also have three children under the age of 10: Claire, 8, Jack, who is five, and the youngest, 2½-year-old Sarah.

“It’s really important to me to have everything in its place and to live in a space that is clutter-free and bright and open,” says Sophia. “And this home really offers that. We’ve just been away for two weeks and it’s always so amazing to come home, to a house that you love so much.”

And, it’s not just the family that is loving this home — its dynamic design is turning heads in multiple spheres. It recently won Best Infill 2,000 to 4,000 square feet at the 2024 Canadian Home Builders’ Association-Edmonton Region Awards.

Article content

Toggle full screen modePrevious Gallery Image

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

Next Gallery ImageToggle gallery captions

All 6 Photos for Gallery

Function Not Available

Full Screen is not supported on this browser version.

You may use a different browser or device to view this in full screen.

OK

Prior to building the home, the couple and their three children had been living in a two-bedroom condo just off of on Jasper Avenue for almost 12 years while the duo was finishing their education. But as the family grew, it was time for a larger space.

“We looked at a home designed by Alloy Homes, and we loved it — it was in the valley, but it wasn’t 100 per cent perfect for our family. So, we kept looking and just after that we found the lot in Glenora and that was it,” says Sophia.

That was in the spring of 2019 and at the time, Sophia had asked her father, Gino Pin, a retired architect from Yellowknife, to draw up some preliminary sketches for a new build home on the east-west facing lot, which was bounded by two alleys on the north and south side of the lot and had a reverse pie-shape (narrower at the front) that arced out towards the rear of the lot on the north side.

“He came and walked the lot and took into consideration the sun angles and so forth. He and I are on the same page when it comes to design. The lot has to speak to you,” says Sophia.

“But my dad’s retired and doesn’t use AutoCAD and we knew that we would have to bring on a team to take the project further,” recalls Sophia, noting that initially they brought on an Edmonton design/build team, but it just didn’t work out.

Article content

Article content

In September of 2019, the couple connected with Alloy Homes and brought them on to refine the initial plans and build the home. “They just really aligned with what we wanted, their style and design.”

As the plans evolved, great care was taken to respect both the context of the lot and the neighbourhood.

The goal was to create a friendly and approachable facade that blended with the streetscape, in keeping with the intent of the over-a-century old community of Glenora with its mature stands of leafy trees and heritage architecture.

“It’s really important to plan a home deliberately and not just make a plan that you drop on a site and hope for the best. There was an architectural rationale or a planning rationale for every move that was made in the home,” says Christopher Lemke, managing partner and co-founder at Alloy Homes.

Much like with Sophia’s dad, the lot really spoke to the team at Alloy Homes and, as such, informed the architecture. In addition, the family really wanted to retain the existing mature stands of trees in the backyard, including two apple trees, meaning a rear garage was out of the question.

Article content

“So, it made sense, given that the front of the lot was quite narrow, to put the garage at the front, which allowed us to put all of the living spaces at the back, where the house is much wider and where there is this direct connection to that backyard,” says Lemke.

To achieve this, the garage was tucked in along the southern edge of the property, facing the north alleyway, and entirely hidden from the streetscape view. The design allowed for a unique massing consisting of two perpendicular blocks: a longer wing intersected by another at back, where the lot is wider. Together, they define a welcoming courtyard at the front and a private rooftop terrace at back.

Exterior materials combine adobe wood and stone, giving a highly textural appeal that works with the home’s architectural massing and setbacks. This juxtaposition offers plenty of context and movement, inviting viewers to linger and uncover the multi-faceted layers.

Inside the home, the intrigue continues.

“Indoor-outdoor living is really important to us, as is being able to see all of the trees,” says Sophia.

Article content

The home unfolds as an open-concept living space with 10-foot ceilings, huge windows and skylights. The esthetic (hats off to Alykhan Velji Designs) is clean with white walls and warm woods with the family’s art collection adding pops of colour and highlighting a mid-century modern furniture collection.

A butler’s pantry with second dishwasher, fridge and sink offers plenty of storage and a space to make smoothies and coffees in the morning, while two mudrooms help to keep clutter at bay.

The home was crafted with a lengthy list of high-performance and sustainable specifications, including a full complement of solar panels as well as several healthy living features, including a home gym and spa.

A sculptural central staircase with open risers allows the light to shine through on multi-levels, while an outdoor rooftop terrace accessed from both the upstairs lounge room and also from the master suite provides plenty of indoor-outdoor living space for the entire family.

“It’s so bright in the house that most of the time, we don’t have to turn on any lights,” shares Sophia, noting that one of her favourite spaces is the breakfast nook in the kitchen. “It’s probably where we spend most of our time. The windows are huge and everything is so green outside. It’s just beautiful.”

Article content