The race is on for the tallest of the tall timber buildings in Canada. In Toronto, one contender is 77 Wade Avenue, designed by Bogdan Newman Caranci (BNC) Architects and Urban Design. If completed today, it would be the tallest modern mass timber commercial building in Canada, at 8 storeys and approximately 150,000 square feet.  Developed and managed by Next Property Group, this purpose-designed office and collaboration environment targets the high tech sector, and will be a prototype for mid-rise office buildings.
A view of the front façade of the proposed building at 77 Wade.
The key design intent of the project was to fuse contrasting materials to enhance the inherent warmth of an exposed wood structure. Overall, the structure is a composite of mass timber, concrete and steel structural assemblies. Unlike the construction of 20th century post-and-beam buildings, construction of 77 Wade optimizes the use of a mass timber hybrid structural system by way of pre-fabricated components and just-in-time delivery and construction practices. By doing so, it achieves spans akin to traditional concrete and steel superstructure projects for modern commercial office buildings. View of the lobby.
The building?s envelope will predominately be clad in a folded-plane curtain wall to expose the innovative structure within, while also adding a dynamic form for the streetscape.
A profile view shows the angular geometry of the curtain wall.
The approach to the building is unified with an...