The tallest mass-timber building development in the US is “on hold for the foreseeable future,” according to the project’s developer. Sources: Engineering News Record, Treehugger
The 12-story mixed-use building, known as Framework, has been under development in Portland, Oregon, since 2014.
It was first delayed a year ago and currently is postponed because of changing market conditions. These include inflation, escalating construction costs and fluctuations in the tax credit market, which all have had a negative impact on the development’s bottom line, says the developer.
There were hints of trouble in January, when Rachel Monahan of Willamette Week noted that it was “attracting critics because it would be far more expensive to build than a traditional concrete and steel structure.”
Framework was supposed to be “a catalytic project which will serve as a national case study”, but it was controversial because of its cost. Monahan also noted that there was a funding shortfall of about $2 million that was never closed.
There are lots of crazy changing market conditions happening right now; lumber has spiked from US$315 at the start of 2017 to US$540 earlier this year, thanks to increased demand because of the hot American economy and big tariffs imposed by the Trump government on Canadian lumber.
Cross-laminated timber (CLT) uses a lot of wood, so a big increase like that is going to make a difference. The alternatives, steel and concrete, have also spiked because of tariffs, generally making all kinds of housing less affordable. 
CLT is still new and expensive, and between tax cuts that lit a fire under the economy and tariffs that lit a fire under material prices, it is a tough time to try and build non-profit housing for a fixed price.
Framework received a US$1.5-million US Tall Wood Building Prize for a two-year research, testing and permitting phase related to the structural, fire and acoustical performance of the mass-timber design.
Timber buildings taller than four or five stories are not currently permitted under US building codes, except through a performance based design approach.
Research results supported permit approval for the 148ft tall project, granted last year by the state and city.
“Despite the news, we are continuing our efforts with mass timber,” says Thomas Robinson, founding principal of LEVER Architecture. The firm is designing other mass-timber structures, but none as tall as Framework.
