Architect unveils design for 436-foot-tall wooden tower in Stockholm

Dive Brief:

Stockholm could be in store for a 436-foot-tall, 40-story wooden tower, which would be the Swedish city’s tallest building, according to Dezeen.
The cross-laminated timber (CLT) skyscraper would feature 250 apartments, with those floors covered by a "perforated timber screen," and floor numbers covering the facade. The first seven levels would include shops, restaurants and a public terrace. See renderings of the tower here.
A liberal political party, the Center Party, commissioned Anders Berensson Architects to design the tower, but construction will most likely have to wait until the party is elected to office, Dezeen reported.

Dive Insight:

According to the architect, the design for the building aims to serve as a model for a possible solution to Stockholm’s population growth. Berensson told Dezeen that building on car parks would reduce the number of cars in the city and provide more high-density housing. He also wanted to give a nod to CLT in his design, as Sweden has a significant wood industry, and CLT has only been used previously in shorter buildings.

Wooden skyscrapers, or "plyscrapers," have been gaining popularity across the globe. Earlier this month, designers at London-based PLP Architecture and the University of Cambridge submitted a proposal to London Mayor Boris Johnson for an 80-story, 984-foot tall wooden residential skyscraper for the city's historic Barbican housing estate. London is also experiencing a population surge, and proponents say the 1,000-unit building is just what the heart of London needs. If the project comes to fruition, it will be London’s second tallest building and the tallest wooden building in the world.

One obstacle that continues to get in the way of more frequent utilization of CLT, though, is existing building codes. Currently, the University of Oregon is testing CLT panels against a variety of hazards like seismic activity and fire, and proponents hope that the test results will spur building code changes and lead more architects and developers to promote its use in high-rises.