Down a Variegated Landscape Path

– By Robin Jovanovich –

When Sean Jancski was a student at Pelham High School, he took architectural drawing and quickly decided architecture was the profession he would pursue. He received an early lesson in the best-laid plans when, in 1988, he met a landscape architect who encouraged him to consider his field, a growing one.

He never looked back, although he does find himself looking regularly at architectural drawings — “the landscape needs to reflect the architecture.”

Jancski studied at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry at Syracuse University and Parsons School of Design. After college he went to work for the Westchester County Department of Planning. “All the parks and streetscape work I did as a young landscape architect with the County really helped later on. I was comfortable with wetlands permits, tight budgets and the public process early,” he said.

After six years of doing municipal projects in Port Chester, Tuckahoe and beyond, he landed a job with pioneering landscape architect Armand Benedek, who was known for creating natural environments. He worked for him for a decade and then set up his own firm, Inviting Environments, in Greenwich.

“My first project was going to be a $20 million BMW dealership in Greenwich. They dug the hole but the project never happened.” Another good lesson: some projects never get past the planning stage.

Jancski says the real challenges are a sloping piece of property, getting the drainage right and making sure the overall plan flows. Creating a beautiful environment seems to be the easy part for him. “A well-designed project should provide decades of enjoyment,” he says matter-of-factly.

In 2008 he won the Connecticut Institute of Architecture’s “People’s Choice Award” for “the property you most want to have.” Judging from the projects on his website, he’ll be winning many more awards for pools, waterfalls, playgrounds or even just patios.

A Rye resident for the last seven years, Jancski decided to move his office closer to home this year. He and architect Paul Shainberg, also a Rye resident with whom he shared office space in Greenwich, moved to loft-like quarters at 43 Purchase Street.
“It’s great sharing space with an architect and I love being able to bike to work. I also love it when my wife and 3-year-old son stop by for a visit and convince me to walk over and have lunch on the Village Green.”

Comfortable doing small gardens, Jancski is also excited about the luxury hotel resort project he’s doing in the Middle East, which includes a man-made beach. At The Whitby School in Greenwich, he’s working on a meandering environmental walkway.

Asked to describe his approach to landscape architecture, he replies, “I try to remain a little flexible. You can’t do the same things because the site, the homeowner, and the architect are different every time.”