New Zealand’s Tallest Commercial Timber Building Proposed in Auckland

Downtown Auckland, New Zealand, could soon be home to the country’s tallest commercial timber building, according to a feature by Wood Central (6-18-24). Jame Kirkpatrick Group has presented plans to redevelop an existing lot with a new 11-story mass timber building.

According to a developer statement, the new tower is part of a push to “regenerate the site from a demolished, end-of-life building into a robust and legible urban structure that can stand for the next 50 years.” Internationally acclaimed architect Fearon Hay has been commissioned to design the mass timber structure.

James Kirkpatrick Jr., the group’s CEO and Managing Director, said the building will rise ten stories from the road, have around 9500 square meters of office space with two levels of basement for 48 car parks, and “encourage a high-quality tenant in line with some of the green initiatives required for their businesses or their clients.”

Wood Central reports that the building will target a 6 Star Green Star rating—like the $200 million (AUD) University of Auckland’s Social Sciences building, which opened last year—with Kirkpatrick turning to mass timber as an alternative to concrete, reducing emissions and the weight of the building.