Best Use of Certified Timber Prize: a green oasis and a community meeting point with sustainability at heart

18 October 2022 Sustainable construction

The World Architecture Festival (WAF) and PEFC have unveiled the finalists for this year’s Best Use of Certified Timber Prize.

The Prize rewards architects and project teams for using certified timber as a main construction material for outstanding buildings. Two of the finalists are Paseo Mallorca 15, a calm and green oasis in the city, and Alice Hawthorn Pub, a critical meeting point for the local community.

Paseo Mallorca 15 – OHLAB

The residential building in the heart of Palma de Mallorca, Spain, is set to become a landmark in the city due to its sustainability, energy efficiency, interior design and level of comfort.

The outside of the building is defined by two types of facades. A permeable skin made of PEFC-certified wooden slats filters the sun and plays with the light and shade in the living areas of the homes. Another, more solid, stone façade protects the bedrooms.

On entering the building, visitors are greeted by a green wall of Spanish cane, leading out onto the inner courtyard. With its different levels, the courtyard acts as a lung of vegetation, that continues upward until it reaches the landscaped terraces on the eighth floor. A waterfall that cascades to the floor below cools the courtyard in the summer, and creates a relaxing sound.

The project has been designed according to Passivhaus standards to achieve maximum energy efficiency. Air conditioning and cooling needs are reduced by up to 90% compared to conventional buildings, making it a structure with very low energy costs.

Alice Hawthorn Pub – De Matos Ryan

The Alice Hawthorn pub in the historic medieval village of Nun Monkton in the United Kingdom is a community space, and was redeveloped together with local residents.

The village’s location next to two rivers, made it an important historic hub of the river transport network of Northern England, with many travellers stopping there overnight. With road infrastructure replacing river transport, the village lost its significance, and its last remaining pub was under threat of closure.

The redevelopment of Alice Hawthorn Pub has saved an important meeting space for the local community, whose needs were considered at every stage of the design process.

In addition to the pub area, the new scheme includes twelve ensuite guest bedrooms, four on the first floor of the pub and eight around a new courtyard. The design reflects the character of the various informal farmsteads that surround the green. Internally, the new build elements are lined with larch boarding and PEFC-certified poplar plywood.

The home-grown Douglas fir framed buildings use authentic agricultural building materials, such as galvanized corrugated steel roofing and larch cladding, creating the sense that the animals have only recently moved out.

The Best Use of Certified Timber Prize, supported by PEFC

The World Architecture Festival and PEFC are awarding the Best Use of Certified Timber Prize for the fourth time. The Festival will take place as a hybrid event from 30 November until 2 December in Lisbon, Portugal.

Credits: José Hevia, Hufton & Crow