Investors can begin constructing timber buildings of up to 22.5 meters beginning in 2025, thanks to a recent update to existing regulations. It’s a huge step up from the current ceiling of just 12 meters made possible in part to pressure from the Platform for Sustainable Wooden Construction. Spearheaded by UBM Development Czechia and Prodesi/Domesi, the Platform has been pushing to enable investors to deploy modern building methods in the country.
Of course, breaking the 20-meter barrier is hardly revolutionary. There are already numerous timber high rises of 70 and 80 meters around the world an in Europe. UBM itself is working on a 100-meter tower along the Danube in Vienna. But its Czech director Josef Wiedermann says the increased height limit will make it possible for the developer to continue doing business in the country. UBM has pledged to employ timber wherever possible and has already built up a 250,000 sqm wooden pipeline across Austria and Germany. Last year, Wiedermann told ThePrime that the absurdly low limit of 12 meters could prevent it from making further investments in the Czech Republic.
“This step marks a significant shift in the direction of sustainable construction in Czechia and puts us on the same level as mature states in Western Europe, where they’ve been building in this way for several years now,” says Wiedermann.
Members of the Platform for Sustainable Wooden Construction now includes Skanska, Linkcity, Trigema, Edifice Group, YIT, JRD, Crestyl, Komerční banka and Česká spořitelna.
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