Denver Prepares for the Construction of “Return to Form,” Winner of the 2022 Mass Timber Competition

Colorado-based architecture firm Tres Birds has confirmed that construction on the city’s tallest mass timber building will commence in July 2023, according to the Construction Specifier magazine.

The 12-story building dubbed “Return to Form” will be located in Denver’s River North (RiNo) Art District. The project was one of six winners in the Softwood Lumber Board (SLB) and USDA Forest Service 2022 Mass Timber Competition: Building to Net-zero. The Construction Specifier’s report of the earlier news can be found here.

The mass timber for the building will be made from Douglas Fir from the Pacific Northwest. It will be featured as exposed wood in the building’s walls and ceilings. Only a small percentage of the building will be constructed of concrete, including the foundation, stairs, and elevator core.

When complete, “Return to Form” will have commercial space on the ground level and parking on levels two and three. There will be a total of 84 dwelling units, which will occupy the fourth through twelfth floors. Four of the units will meet “affordable” by City of Denver standards.


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