Lucy Wang, writing for Inhabitat:
The nation’s tallest wooden high-rise will soon take shape in Portland, Oregon. Funded by a $1.5 million-dollar award from the U.S. Tall Wood Building Prize Competition, the innovative timber building, named Framework, will be built from domestically sourced and engineered wood products. LEVER Architecture designed the mixed-use high-rise as a beacon of sustainability with its use of low-carbon materials, green roof, and resilient design.
Why is this a big deal? Once completed, this will be North America’s first timber high-rise. Currently, the building code does not allow for wood-framed structures over 85-feet, nor may they exceed 6 stories.
There are numerous benefits to using heavy timber and engineered wood products in general, versus metal, especially when it comes to sustainability. Framework is expected to use 60% less energy than a similarly sized building, 30% less water, and is estimated to offset 1,824 tons of carbon.