New UBC project is North America's first 'luxury timber' condo building

The University of British Columbia’s Point Grey campus is home to another feat of engineering with wood construction, and this time it is located at the southern end of the campus.

Last week, local developer Adera Development Corporation officially completed its Virtuoso condominium building project, which is the first ever market ‘Luxury Timber’ development in North America.

High-tech wood construction at Virtuoso at UBC Wesbrook Village. (Adera Development Corporation)

The six-storey residential is the latest project at UBC Wesbrook Village, and it uses a construction method that centres around a mass timber floor system that substitutes a slab of concrete with a slab of wood. This cross-laminated timber is prefabricated and consists of multiple layers that act as structural panels.

Not only are these panels stronger than other materials, they create quieter homes for homeowners, and are fire and seismic resilient. The wood for this particular project was sustainably and locally sourced.

High-tech wood construction at Virtuoso at UBC Wesbrook Village. (Adera Development Corporation)

Eric Andreasen with Adera says such construction methods will become more commonly used, especially for projects of this scale. For their work with the project, Adera has been awarded a gold plaque by the Residential Environmental Assessment Program.

Last year near the northern end of the campus, UBC completed its 18-storey Brock Commons Tallwood House Student Residence, which is the world’s tallest wood building at a height of 174 ft.

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