Before concrete and steel’s arrival 150 years ago, wood represented the leading building staple. Today, with the advent of ultra-strong, safe mass timber, what’s past is prologue. The era of the ever-taller timber commercial building has arrived.

Mass timber’s acceptance is being propelled by multiple factors, with sustainability and decarbonization of the built environment among the most prominent. Many developers, owners and tenants are determined to cast their lot with sustainable structures.

“Many have climate commitments and climate pledges driving their sustainability interests,” Lauren Wingo, project lead on Washington, D.C.’s 80 M, designed by global sustainable development consultancy Arup, told Commercial Property Executive. At 10 stories, 80 M is the tallest mass timber office building developed to date in the U.S., she said.

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Quicker, safer construction projects are another upside, said Cody Armbrister, head of development, office, with real estate development and investment firm Crow Holdings. Components are prefabricated offsite. “There are fewer people onsite, so you’re able to move faster, move safer. That speed is a critical advantage of mass timber,” he said.

An improved user experience for tenants is still another positive, Armbrister said. Use of natural materials in biophilic design has been shown to hike productivity, reduce stress and absenteeism and promote healthier environments. This goes along with a flight to quality in post-COVID office space. Office tenants may now be leasing less space, but seeking more distinctive and attractive space, Wingo said.

Alan Kennedy, managing director of Hines, which created its proprietary mass timber product T3 more than a decade ago, agreed wood creates distinctive environments.

“Wood is a natural material, and it evokes a different emotion in people when they tour the building,” he commented. “Most visitors immediately walk to one of the mass timber columns to touch it. There is a scent and a quietness that embraces you in a mass timber building. People’s reactions to timber are very powerful.”

Vaulting hurdles

The 2021 International Building Code (IBC) permits up to 18-story timber buildings. But not every city is on board. “Depending on the municipality, you may get one that understands what mass timber is, or one operating on a 2015 IBC,” Armbrister said.

One municipality that appears onboard is the District of Columbia. ARUP regarded D.C. as one of its project partners in developing 80 M, Wingo said. The district was engaged during the design process, and worked alongside ARUP to address safety concerns.

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While some municipalities remain concerned about fire, “there are no challenges from a fire standpoint,” Armbrister said. “It’s more fire-retardant than traditional steel. Fire is given fuel by the timber. But when the timber’s laminated, the outer layer snuffs out fire’s ability to continue. Steel just continues to burn until it returns to its original state.”

The grid layout of floorplates may be seen as a mass timber design challenge, Wingo said. A roughly 30-by-30-foot column grid is common in commercial offices. In mass timber buildings, columns are more closely spaced, at roughly 20 by 30. “That is harder to work with for tenants,” she said. “It changes how you lay out the space.”

Timber may also be saddled with costlier insurance premiums, Armbrister said. Because mass timber structures are limited in number, insurers don’t have a body of evidence to cite in determining how buildings perform over a 10- or 15-year period. “There’s some reticence on the part of insurance carriers,” he said. “With perceived risk can come inherent additional insurance premium costs.”

Availability of product may represent one more concern, said Danny Harrington, director of innovation for development consultant Project Management Advisors.

Mass timber has been used in Europe and Australia since the 1980s. “But there’s not a lot of production in the U.S.,” he said. “Where it’s been successful, there’s been cooperation between the development, construction and forestry industries.”

Design trends

Within T3 buildings, including seven-story T3 Minneapolis, the first major multistory U.S. office building built of wood in a century, Hines uses the timber structure as the finish. “Tenants do not feel the need to change the base condition,” Kennedy said. “A concrete building can be that way, but timber has a warmer feel and a different comfort level than concrete, which tends to feel sterile and cold. With tenants, just complementing the space with their own furniture, the condition requires less modification—and wasted materials going to a landfill—for the next tenant.”

In the case of high-rises, defined as higher than 85 feet, architects and developers are trying to find ways to use more contemporary skin, rather than a punched, masonry-like expression, Armbrister said. “Architects must ask, ‘Where do we accentuate the timber, and where do we wrap it in non-combustible material like sheetrock?’” he added.

“It has to do with the ability of municipalities to fight fire at higher heights.”

There are several exceptions to the 2021 IBC, Kennedy said. While Type IV-A calls for all mass timber elements fully encapsulated, and up to 18 stories, Type IV-B calls for protected exterior, partially exposed interior mass timber elements, and up to 12 stories. Type IV-C calls for protected exterior, exposed mass timber interior, and up to 9 stories. Some jurisdictions may impose not just height limits but restrictions like requiring percentages of the timber to be encapsulated, not exposed.

What’s ahead? Recognizing the urgency associated with the 39 percent of global CO2 emissions derived from developing and operating buildings, Hines is considering incorporating its T3 platform in industrial and residential platforms as well as office projects. Wingo envisions a future delivering more competitive markets for mass timber, reducing the material’s current cost premium.

“It’s a construction type here to stay,” Armbrister concluded. “Headwinds and challenges associated with a perceived new product type will dissipate. You’ll see mass timber in more buildings of all asset classes. The modularization of these buildings, and the idea so much of them can be built off-site, really has people excited.”

One of Miami’s most in-demand neighborhoods is getting a welcomed dose of modern office space. The Offices at THE WELL is part of a new mixed-use development set to rise in Miami’s exclusive Bay Harbor Islands neighborhood, becoming the first high-end office building to launch in the community in decades. Developed by Miami-based Terra, THE WELL Bay Harbor Islands development will include 98,420 square feet of class AA office space, 54 luxury residences, 11,000 square feet dedicated to an integrated wellness experience operated by New York-based wellness company, THE WELL, and a 6,500 square foot signature food and beverage outlet, complete with an expansive rooftop with amenities, garage parking and an elevated plaza. Construction is scheduled to begin in Q1 2023, with completion anticipated in late 2024.

Located at 1177 Kane Concourse, The Offices at THE WELL Bay Harbor Islands will meet growing demand for high-end boutique office space as residents and companies continue to gravitate to South Florida, while reinvigorating Bay Harbor’s iconic Kane Concourse main thoroughfare.

THE WELL New York opened in 2019 as a luxury health and wellness destination that offers clients a range of holistic healthcare services – from Eastern healing practices and Western medicine – including fitness classes, yoga and meditation, acupuncture, sound therapy, spa treatments, and access to the top practitioners in functional medicine and beyond. Since its New York City launch, the brand has expanded with additional locations in Connecticut with THE WELL at Mayflower Inn, and Costa Rica with THE WELL at Hacienda AltaGracia. THE WELL Bay Harbor Islands will become the company’s first Florida location.

“THE WELL Bay Harbor Islands will be a premier address for working, living and wellness just as Miami enjoys a surge of new residents and businesses,” said David Martin, CEO of Terra. “The Offices at THE WELL will be an ideal option for companies looking to incorporate wellness into the workplace, with tenants being able to access all of the exclusive benefits of THE WELL’s curated programming and wellness center.”

Designed by Arquitectonica, with interiors by Meyer Davis, the Offices at THE WELL will reimagine the traditional office lobby into a programmed social space for tenants featuring food and beverage service, unique gathering spaces, and the ability to book THE WELL micro treatments. The development will include four floors of office space complemented by a grand lobby and a rooftop amenity deck, with on-site amenities such as a social lobby and café with comfortable lounge areas, where coffees, juices, and culinary treats can be enjoyed and ordered via text for quick, convenient service. For an outdoor work experience, tenants will have access to greenhouse-style work pods as well as a rooftop level with outdoor meeting areas and community gardens. Office users will also benefit from additional outdoor experiences at an elevated landscaped Plaza, a controlled access parking garage, office valet, and state-of-the-art security.

Office tenants will receive a discounted membership to The Club at THE WELL Bay Harbor Islands, which will include a state-of-the-art fitness and wellness center, as well as full-service concierge services from THE WELL Team, dedicated private outdoor and indoor classes, access to annual health coaching sessions to guide tenants in creating individualized wellness plans, preferred pricing on treatments and services, and exclusive benefits across THE WELL locations globally.

Terra has enlisted a best-in-class team to represent The Offices at THE WELL Bay Harbor Islands, with the Blanca Commercial Real Estate team of Tere Blanca, Danet Linares, Christina Jolley, and Nicole Kaiser leasing the building’s office space.

“Today’s office users are placing emphasis on planning and building custom-designed space in areas that are walkable, accessible to shopping and housing, and which offer on-site outdoor recreation. The Offices at THE WELL Bay Harbor Islands checks all of these boxes – and more,” explains Tere Blanca, CEO of Blanca Commercial Real Estate. “The Offices at THE WELL’s superior technology systems, sustainability initiatives, private rooftop space, and exclusive on-site access to THE WELL and its network of health and wellness destinations globally are appealing to firms looking to establish their presence in one of Miami’s most sought-after neighborhoods.”

Bay Harbor Islands is an exclusive community made up of two islands connected by the Kane Concourse/Broad Causeway bridge, which also leads to Bal Harbour, Surfside and Miami. Other nearby neighborhoods of interest include Indian Creek and Sunny Isles on the Atlantic side, and Sans Souci and Miami Shores to the west. Bay Harbor Islands has its own elementary school, the Ruth K. Broad Bay Harbor K-8 Center, which is consistently rated among the top public schools in the county, along with three neighborhood parks, a tot-lot playground, outdoor fitness space, public tennis courts, a community center, and an assortment of independent shops, galleries, bistros, and professional offices.