Woodscraper Proposed for Vancouver

LotusLand · #1 Posted **Mar 20, 2012, 3:00 PM**

A 30 storey all wood tower proposed for Vancouver.

http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2012/03/w...er-30-storeys/

Mininari · #2 Posted **Mar 20, 2012, 3:29 PM**

Why does this make me think of 'Towering Inferno?'

Interesting though.

jlousa · #3 Posted **Mar 20, 2012, 3:38 PM**

Michael Green has been talking about this tower for a very long time,I remember he went on about it during last years Buildex, he stated that there's no reason a 20storeys tower couldn't be built and possibly as high as 30 storeys in the future. Reality is no one is proposing this building at this point, not in Vancouver. It's a vision.

I'm moving this over to urban design

phesto · #4 Posted **Mar 20, 2012, 3:47 PM**

It irks me when people use the word proposal and vision interchangeably. This is solely a vision based on a discussion paper.

Some of the concepts are interesting though. Note there doesn't appear to be any cost savings over concrete at the highrise level, and it reduces the potential amount of windows.

Unless concrete prices rise so dramatically in the future that the industry pushes for this, I don't see it happening in our lifetimes.

twoNeurons · #5 Posted **Mar 20, 2012, 4:28 PM**

Japanese Castles are made of wood and plaster, and some of them can get quite tall.

Himeji-jo is 46.4m and it was constructed in the early 1600s.

Of course, they had access to higher quality (older growth) wood back then but I would imagine engineered wood would be able to sustain a taller building.

s211 · #6 Posted **Mar 20, 2012, 5:11 PM**

Can you imagine insurance costs for something like this?

And not just for fire. Think water damage from a leaking pipe. The latter already is very costly in a concrete building. Can you imagine the restoration costs for a soaked wooden high-rise?

Dmajackson · #7 Posted **Dec 4, 2012, 12:07 AM**

Just a side note this building is featured in an article in the National Geographic. Nothing extensive but worth a read!

Also IMO this is a gorgeous building and would look go in any good-sized Canadian city!

djh · #8 Posted **Dec 4, 2012, 12:15 AM**

Wood rot? Termites? Infestations? Foundation sitting in water and mud? Maintenance costs (you think Olympic Village's sustainable facilities are costly!)?
What about the glues used to make the beams? The default glues are very heavy with chemicals that you don't want to be exposed to 24/7. Yes, you can get low-VOC materials, but there goes any prospect of cost savings.

I'd be very surprised if any developer - no matter how green their heart - could justify building something like this. Nevertheless, it's great to see thinking outside of the box.