The rivalry between European and Canadian cities for the tallest timber building has not slowed down: in December 2015, the authorities of Bordeaux, France, announced a competition for a complex of buildings with a 50-meter wooden tower as part of the development of the area adjacent to the Saint-Jean train station. The competition was won by Jean-Paul Viguier & Associés with the Hypérion project and Art & Build with the Silva office complex, beating Canopia So Fujimoto.
The three-part "Hyperion", located at the corner of Vernier and Armagnac streets, consists of a 57-meter residential tower “rooted” in the urban fabric with traditional reinforced concrete structures: a 10-storey residential block and a 7-storey office building. The total area of the complex of 17,000 m2 will house 160 apartments, 4,000 m2 of office space and 500 m2 of shops. There are 82 apartments in the residential tower, five or six per floor, the most spacious are with angular two-way orientation, on the last level there are six duplexes.
Unlike residential wooden buildings existing today (the tallest of which is
49-meter "Treet" in Bergen, Norway), in "Hyperion" the core of stiffness, stair-lift shafts and the three lower floors will be made of reinforced concrete, and only from the fourth floor the supporting structure will become wooden, with columns and beams made of glued wood and LVL - beams and slabs of 200 mm cross-glued CLT panels.
Many balconies of various geometries define a discrete, layered image of the building: this form has developed as a result of lighting calculations, the search for spectacular view openings and the optimal arrangement of structures to ensure the best insolation of the interior and open public spaces. The parallelogram plan of the tower means there are no external right angles, which adds drama to the overlapping acute-angled balconies: when viewed from the ground, their timber cladding must contrast effectively with the steel cladding and glass surfaces.
The architects of Jean-Paul Viguier's studio attach particular importance to landscaping: at the turn of the tram lines, a spacious public space is created, smoothly flowing into a semi-private garden in the courtyard of the residential part of the complex; in addition, residents have access to green roof terraces.
The name of the tower, "Hyperion", is not a reference to ancient mythology, but a reminder of the tallest tree on Earth bearing this name, an almost 116-meter sequoia in California's Redwood National Park.
The theme of "urban jungle" was also developed in the competition project "Canopia" from the Bureau of So Fujimoto, which, however, was not accepted for implementation. The architects positioned their project as "a landscape design object with structures included in it that meet the conditions of the competition": inspired by the vineyards of Bordeaux, they proposed an extravagant idea of hanging gardens and themed green cascading spaces - vegetable gardens, orchards, vineyards, winter greenhouses - on the roof of four buildings connected by long air passages at the roof level.
As in the project-laureate, "Canopia" uses a multi-layer technique, visually facilitating a massive multi-storey volume. But, in contrast to the complex silhouette of "Hyperion", the constant geometry of gallery balconies and thin continuous verticals of the fences create an airy envelope with a strictly delineated contour.
The complex has 199 apartments ranging from 41 to 88 m2, 3,770 m2 of office space and 500 m2 of retail space. The supporting frame of the building is made of glued timber, the floors are cross-glued CLT panels made of fir and spruce wood.
Another project approved for implementation is the Silva office complex designed by Art & Build studio: the second 18-storey tower will grow on the site adjacent to Hyperion.
In 2020, thanks to the updated railway track, the route from Paris to Bordeaux will be shortened to 2 hours, and one of the first impressions of the city for a traveler leaving the Saint-Jean platform will be the tallest wooden buildings in the world.
