When complete in 2017, the 18-storey (53m) tower, called Brock Commons, will house hundreds of students at the University of British Columbia (UBC).
Unless overtaken by other ambitious timber towers now at design or proposal stage, the CAN$51.5m residence is set to be the world’s tallest, beating the 13-storey ‘Origine’ apartment block now being built in Quebec City.
The world’s tallest completed timber structure is the 10-storey Forte apartment block in Melbourne, Australia, completed in November 2012 by Lend Lease.
Construction on Brock Commons, designed by Acton Ostry Architects, started on 9 November and the building is set to open in September 2017. It will house 404 students in 272 studios and 33 four-bedroom units.
Earlier this year the provincial government of British Columbia passed a new regulation that allowed UBC to go over timber-structure height limits if the building met rigorous health and safety standards. The architects, Acton Ostry, and UBC building officials helped draft the regulation.
From Construction Manager: https://www.construction-manager.co.uk/international/worlds-tallest-timber-tower-going-vancouver/