Photo courtesy of DLR Group
LOCATION: Chicago SIZE: 270,000 square feet ARCHITECT: DLR Group PRINCIPAL: Steve Cavanaugh
The largest mass timber structure in the U.S. in the modern construction era is in the works in Chicago, and it’s all part of a bigger plan to transform the former industrial area known as Goose Island. The six-story T3 Goose Island is a wooden office building that’s renewable, carbon-storing, and has a low carbon footprint as compared to concrete or steel. It’s substantially lighter than concrete or steel, too.
“At its core, T3 addresses a growing cultural demand for sustainability, connectivity, and local authenticity,” says Steve Cavanaugh, the principal leading the design for DLR Group. “DLR Group’s collaboration with Hines on the development and design for T3 projects like Goose Island offers a response to a shift in the cultural landscape, where the wants and needs of contemporary, technology-rich workers are driving the way we think about workplace design.”
[Photo: Courtesy of DLR Group]
Work on the project started after the success of the mass timber T3—or Timber, Transit, and Technology—building in Minneapolis, also said to be the tallest such structure when it was completed in 2016. T3 Goose Island is part of Chicago’s North Branch Framework—a land use plan for 760 acres along the Chicago River, redeveloping the once grimy Goose Island into a highly sought-after commercially anchored district with public transportation, open space, and pedestrian- and bike-friendly areas.
The T3 Goose Island building will feature CorTen steel cladding as well as exposed wood. Modern amenities will round out the project with lounge areas, a communal rooftop deck, bike storage, a gym, and ground-floor retail as well as 275 parking spaces. The project team is targeting LEED Gold certification and, when complete, expect energy use to be 80% below the baseline.
