The first timber high-rise in the U.S. set for construction in Portland
By David Malone, Associate Editor
To some, the idea of timber high-rises is still a contentious issue, with much of the debate focused on aspects of fire safety, but that hasn’t stopped Lever Architecture from designing what will become the first timber high-rise in the United States.
Rendering courtesy of Lever Architecture.
Retail and public exhibition space will be combined on the ground floor while the rest of the high-rise will comprise five levels of office space and 60-units of affordable housing. The affordable housing component will accommodate residents earning less than 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI). Meanwhile, the commercial tenants will be B corporations – businesses certified to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency.
Framework has received a $1.4 million award from the U.S. Tall Wood Building Prize Competition that will offset the costs of testing and peer review necessary to pursue a performance-based project beyond what is permitted in current building codes.
The project is scheduled to begin construction in late 2017 and be completed by late 2018.
