Five winners were named in the second annual 2023 Mass Timber Competition: Building to Net-Zero Carbon, which was jointly funded by the Softwood Lumber Board and the USDA Forest Service (USDA). The winning projects received funds totaling $2.2 million to demonstrate mass timber’s applications in architectural design and highlight its significant role in reducing the carbon footprint of the built environment.

“One way to improve the health and resilience of forests is by sustainably harvesting trees to manufacture wood products like mass timber,” said John Crockett, USDA Forest Service Associate Deputy Chief of State and Private Forestry. “As wildfires become more prevalent across the United States, a stronger supply chain for lumber and mass timber improves forest health and supports the construction of low carbon buildings—both effective ways to mitigate the impacts of climate change.”

SLB Chief Marketing Officer Ryan Flom added “The SLB was encouraged to see the architecture and construction community continue to expand implementation of mass timber systems in effective ways across a range of building types. This year’s winning projects will not only provide much-needed housing and gathering spaces for their communities, but they will also demonstrate viable paths for other teams to build for well-being, commercial adoption, resilience, and a minimal carbon footprint.”

This year’s winning proposals included:

Project: CODA Detroit. Building Type: Mixed-Use Residential. Project Team: OOMBRA Architects, Brush Park Properties / IN Development Partners, JDH Engineering, Britt Peters and Associates, and AM Higley.

Project: Up@310 Lofts. Project Type: Vertical Addition. Project Team: Lignin Group, Tim Olson, Banwell Architects, 310 Marlboro St., and Entuitive.

Project: Via/NWA IC Program. Building Type: Affordable Multifamily Housing. Project Team: A226, Blue Crane, Modus Studio, Tatum-Smith-Welcher, Aspect Structural Engineers, and Arco Construction.

Project: The Village SF Wellness Center. Building Type: Mixed Use. Project Team: PYATOK architecture + urban design, The Friendship House Association of American Indians, DCI Engineers, and Cahill Contractors.

Project: Woolsey Gardens. Building Type: Mid-Rise Multifamily. Project Team: Solomon Cordwell Buenz, Northern California Land Trust, Tipping Structural Engineers, Swinerton Builders, and Timberlab.

The 2023 competition was the second consecutive year of the program, which in 2022 awarded $2 million in total funds to six recipients.

WoodWorks, a non-profit staffed with structural engineers, architects, and construction experts, conducted technical screening and evaluation of the entries. Finalists were chosen by an independent jury representing the fields of architecture, structural engineering, construction, real estate development, and forest products. They included Joe Allbright, Senior Director, Corporate Real Estate, Walmart; Jennifer Bonner, Director, MALL; Kathryn Fernholz, President/CEO, Dovetail Partners; Tom Flicker, Sustainable Product Innovation, Amazon; Andrew Katz, Founder and Principal, Katz Development; Chandra Robinson, Principal, LEVER Architecture; Erich Roden, Deputy Chief (Ret.), City of Milwaukee Fire Department; Lauren Wingo, Senior Engineer, Arup; Christine Zinkgraf, Sr. Project Executive, Lease Crutcher Lewis.

Winning proposals exemplified new ways to design and construct mass timber buildings in the U.S. at a higher scale, as well as a commitment to strengthen the mass timber supply chain through the use of domestically sourced wood from sustainably managed forests. Award recipients have pledged to share with the broader design and construction community lessons learned during project phases, including cost analyses, life cycle assessments, and other research results.