Mass Timber Construction Podcast
Mass Timber Construction Podcast
Mass Timber Market Updates - June 2025 - Week TwentyFour
Groundbreaking mass timber hotel projects are transforming skylines across three continents, showcasing the remarkable versatility and sustainability of engineered wood construction at unprecedented scales.
Vancouver is stepping boldly into the future with plans for North America's tallest mass timber hotel—an 18-story structure strategically positioned between Granville Island and Broadway. This pioneering development will transform a long-vacant contaminated rail site into a sustainable architectural landmark, demonstrating how urban renewal and environmental responsibility can beautifully intersect.
Meanwhile, Adelaide's ambitious 35-story mass timber hotel project has been revitalized with expanded plans now featuring 324 rooms and luxury double penthouses. This vertical extension of the heritage-listed MLC building in Victoria Square represents an innovative approach to urban densification while honoring historical architecture. With construction by Multiplex scheduled to begin later this year, this Cox Architecture-designed marvel is set to welcome guests by early 2027.
Perhaps most revolutionary is Barcelona's Room Community development, where mass timber construction supports a radical vision for collective urban living. Beyond its cross-laminated timber structure and impressive environmental credentials (including 60% landscaped space and net-zero standards), this 51-unit complex reimagines social architecture through gender-inclusive design, communal spaces that foster connection, and thoughtful features supporting caregiving and shared responsibility. Wide south-facing walkways double as social platforms while rooftop gardens provide climate refuges, creating a template for community-centered sustainable living.
These projects exemplify how mass timber isn't just changing how we build—it's transforming how we live. Subscribe to the Mass Timber Construction Podcast for weekly updates on innovative projects worldwide, and consider submitting your research to our International Mass Timber Journal through the MTCJ portal at masstimberconstruction.com.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are live. This is the moment you all have been waiting for. It's time for the global sensation, the one, the only, the undisputed heavyweight podcast in the world the Mass Timber Construction Podcast. And now here's Mark Kramer, your host. Good morning, good afternoon or good evening wherever you are in the world today, welcome to the Mass Timber Construction Podcast. My name is Paul Kramer, your host, and welcome to another weekly update of projects from all around the globe. Don't forget to hit subscribe.
Speaker 1:And if you've got a journal manuscript that you want to put in a top rating mass timber focused journal, please consider our International Mass Timber Journal and please submit your manuscript. You can go to our MTCJ portal on masstimberconstructioncom, masstimberconstructioncom. And our impact factor is getting towards two. It's going to pass that in the next year, very certain of that, and there's some great articles on there. So if you're a researcher, please do get your manuscript in.
Speaker 1:Let's have a look at what's making news around the world this week in mass timber construction land and first up this week, vanc. Vancouver's first mass timber hotel is proposed near Granville Island. The 18-story hotel will be set for the 5080 West 3rd Avenue in Vancouver, about midway between Granville and the W Broadway. The Citycouver has received a rezoning application for a new hotel that would have the very distinct purpose of being the first mass timber hotel in vancouver and the tallest mass timber hotel in north america. According to the application published in early june, subject to the site approval, 1500 to 1588 west West 3rd Avenue and 1580 West 3rd Avenue, legally near the intersection of First Street and Northwest Grenville Loop Park, will have a new hotel. Grenville Island is located 10 minute walk to the northeast, while Broadway is located 10 minute walk to the south, so it's quite central. The narrow parcel of land has long been vacant and used as a parking lot, sandwiched between a car dealership and a car servicing shop, and this prompted the property developer to formally put two parcels of land together, consolidate these into one application, and formerly it was the cp rail site which was contaminated. At the time, bc asset values 5080 west third street or avenue, I should say in 2024 at 4.346 million dollars, and the property is currently held under icx holding.
Speaker 1:If you'd like to check out some of the impressive concept drawings for this amazing hotel, you can head to our LinkedIn feed, and a few years ago we announced that there might be a hotel made of timber in Adelaide in the CBD, the central business district, in a place called South Australia. In my home country, australia, during the height of the COVID sort of era, veteran developer Barry Harrop said that he was going to bring the world's tallest cross-timbered timber hotel to Adelaide and it would be a towering 31 stories above Victoria Square, extending the heritage listed MLC building. So it is a overbuild or a vertical extension. Now plans have been reignited after they were sort of shelved. New plans have now got two double penthouses and the original design now stands at 35 stories with a total of 324 rooms. The property is set to welcome guests between late 2026 and early 2027. If you want to have a look at concept drawings, you can do it. Designed by Cox Architecture, built using CLT, and the construction schedule will begin later this year, led by Multiplex, the building construction company. Congratulations to everyone on the project. Let's hope that it does come to fruition this time and I think it would have been around about three or maybe four years ago.
Speaker 1:We spoke about the first mass timber buildings being in Spain. Well, modular housing building company Spain, where modular housing building company Cerrato Estudio now is making space for equity in a shared life in Barcelona. In the heart of Barcelona, there's the city's historic fabric which is going to meet innovation driven at 22 district. Architectural firm serato studio brings a radical vision for collective housing to life, with the room community part of a larger redevelopment as a building a within a four block ensemble designed by multiple architectural team, the dwelling introduces new modular, inclusive living homes comprising of 51 units, surrounded by gorgeous common areas, and design supports for adaptable living, social equity and social practices. They are incredibly proud of these particular units. The new module for urban living is one that prioritizes everything for the well-being of the residents who are also occupants. What sets the room community apart is a full-spectrum approach to care, both social and environmental, from its cross-limited timber, mass timber superstructure and passive climate strategies. It's a robust green infrastructure project with more than 60% of the plot of the being landscaped and building to net zero standards, while mitigating the urban heat island effect. At the social level, the project is conceived by a gender perspective, with strategies for supporting caregiving, safety and shared responsibility. Wide south-facing communal walkways double as balconies and connect homes to rooftop gardens in a shaded climate refuge for social platform that strengthens neighborhood ties and community interaction.
Speaker 1:Congratulations to the team on the project. There's some beautiful images if you'd like to go to our linkedin feed and have a look at them. And that's it, folks. That's what we've got time for this week in mass timber construction land LinkedIn feed and have a look at them. And that's it, folks. That's what we've got time for this week in Mass Timber Construction Land. I hope you have a great week ahead. We look forward to catching up with you next week. Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, comment any of the content we have on our social media platform and thank you for tuning in to this podcast every week. We look forward to bringing you more news next week and we'll catch up with you very soon. Good morning, good afternoon or good evening, wherever you are in the world today. This is Paul Kramer signing off on the Mass Timber Construction Podcast. Thank you.