ST. LOUIS 鈥 Bricks built 50度灰视频. Wood may take it into the future.
A building material called mass timber is gaining popularity across the country and in 50度灰视频 because of its sustainability, natural wood aesthetics and potential to save real estate developers money with a shortened construction schedule.
Woodward Lofts put mass timber into its two-level apartments on Tower Grove Avenue. 50度灰视频-based developer New + Found is using mass timber in the second phase of City Foundry STL, which calls for apartments and office space.
And now AHM Group plans to use it to build 279 apartments at the corner of 21st and Locust streets, just north of the new soccer stadium in Downtown West. The $140 million project would be the third development in 50度灰视频 to use mass timber and among the three largest mass timber buildings in the country.
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鈥淕iven the acclaim that the stadium is getting for its impact on the neighborhood,鈥 said AHM Group鈥檚 Brian Pratt, 鈥渨e thought this would be a tremendous opportunity to bring a uniquely designed building to the market that has sustainable impacts.鈥
Wood itself is not a new building material. But mass timber, or cross-laminated timber, wasn鈥檛 developed until the 1990s. It uses thick stacks of soft wood like spruce, pine and fir glued together to produce heavy slabs that are strong and fire resistant. The wood sequesters carbon dioxide, contrary to steel and concrete manufacturing, which generates CO2, a major contributor to climate change. It has largely been sourced from manufacturers in Canada and Pacific Northwest, though now producers are found in Alabama and Arkansas.
It is more common in Europe, particularly across Scandinavia, but cities like Cleveland, Milwaukee and Portland, Oregon, now all have mass timber developments.
鈥淚t is rapidly hitting a tipping point here,鈥 said Jason Korb, founder of Milwaukee-based Korb + Associates Architects, which designed the world鈥檚 tallest mass timber building, in Milwaukee. 鈥淲hen we started our building here (in 2020), there was no manufacturing capability in the U.S.鈥
His firm is working with 50度灰视频-based Trivers Architects on AHM Group鈥檚 project.
Developers typically use mass timber for apartment and office projects where residents and tenants are more apt to enjoy the aesthetics. And they don鈥檛 have to spend money finishing steel or concrete because they want to keep the wood exposed. Developers can also save more money with a shortened construction timeline because the mass timber pieces can be made with exact specifications and delivered to the worksite ready to go.
鈥淔or higher-end housing, it鈥檚 a great differentiator,鈥 Korb said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a great differentiation between a building with exposed wood in an apartment, for instance, versus concrete.鈥
The sustainability element also is a big draw. The Milwaukee project was estimated to have sequestered the same amount of carbon dioxide as 2,400 cars on the road for a year. That got his clients buzzing, he said.
And its growing acceptance offers 50度灰视频 and the Midwest a rare opportunity to take the lead on a sustainability initiative. The region鈥檚 traditionally low energy costs mean many consumers and businesses have not been as motivated to adapt environmentally friendly building techniques.
Still, some architects and environmentalists are concerned about the sustainability of mass timber, too, especially regarding forest management and beam transportation.
Architect James Roseberry, chair elect of the Missouri Gateway Green Building Council Board, said the material鈥檚 popularity can be a double-edged sword if production ramps up so quickly that the ability to harvest the wood sustainability is outstripped.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of analysis that鈥檚 still going on about these products to make sure that we鈥檙e making the correct choices,鈥 said Roseberry, who works for Trivers but is not on the AHM project.
Mass timber isn鈥檛 the solution for everything, he said. And there are efforts underway to reduce the energy and carbon intensity of concrete and steel.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to get away from using it ever,鈥 Roseberry said of concrete. 鈥淏ut cross-laminated timber is a way that we can use less.鈥
AHM Group鈥檚 project at 2011 Locust Street calls for a 29-story tower: Mass timber will be used for the 22 stories of apartments that will be built on top of a seven-story parking garage with ground-floor retail. A restaurant on the eighth floor will be open to the public. AHM Group expects to shave off at least 90 days in the construction timeline using mass timber, said Pratt.
The mass timber project is one phase of a larger $240 million redevelopment of this part of Locust that AHM Group has planned over the next three years. The developer also is building The Y/O apartments at 3201 Morgan Ford Road in 50度灰视频 and redeveloping the Bavarian Inn on Arsenal Street into apartments and office.
鈥淚 think this is a technology that hopefully, ultimately, becomes a more mainstream alternative. It has sustainable impacts, which we all need to be aware of,鈥 said Pratt, of AHM Group.
鈥淎nd, frankly, it will be less disruptive for the neighborhoods because of the shorter timeframe.鈥