Sidewalk Labs and Collaborators Design a 35-Story Timber Building

The recently revealed Proto-Model-X building would reach new heights for timber.

1 minute read

January 28, 2020, 9:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Cara Eckholm shares the newly revealed details of a net-zero, timber building that would reach 35 stories if built.

The building, referred to as Proto-Model-X, or PMX, is currently in the "proto-model" stage. A large collection of design and engineering firms worked with Sidewalk Labs to create the design. Eckholm credits Aercoustics, Aspect Structural Engineers, Atelier Ten, CadMakers, Gensler, Integral, JE Dunn Construction, Michael Green Architecture, RDH, Sweco, and Vortex Fire for the current status of the design. 

As Eckholm notes in the article, 35 stories has yet to be achieved by a timber building. The proto-model stands as a "digital proof-of-concept" for the idea:

The concept is borrowed from manufacturing, where it’s common to design one perfect “widget” before producing them en masse in a factory. With PMX, our “widget” is a 3D building model rendered in Autodesk’s Revit, a popular building design software, and hosted in BIM 360, a cloud-based tool that stores technical information about the building.

Eckholm's article serves to introduce two explorations of the concept, each with their own article (Exploration 1 and Exploration 2) on the Sidewalk Labs website.

Friday, January 24, 2020 in Sidewalk Talk

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Concrete Brutalism building with slanted walls and light visible through an atrium.

What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities

How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.

February 28, 2025 - Justin Hollander

Complete Street

‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge

Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.

February 27, 2025 - Streetsblog USA

Green electric Volkswagen van against a beach backdrop.

The VW Bus is Back — Now as an Electric Minivan

Volkswagen’s ID. Buzz reimagines its iconic Bus as a fully electric minivan, blending retro design with modern technology, a 231-mile range, and practical versatility to offer a stylish yet functional EV for the future.

March 3, 2025 - ABC 7 Eyewitness News

View of mountains with large shrubs in foreground in Altadena, California.

Healing Through Parks: Altadena’s Path to Recovery After the Eaton Fire

In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena is uniting to restore Loma Alta Park, creating a renewed space for recreation, community gathering, and resilience.

March 9 - Pasadena NOw

Aerial view of single-family homes with swimming pools in San Diego, California.

San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule

The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.

March 9 - Axios

Close-up of row of electric cars plugged into chargers at outdoor station.

Electric Vehicles for All? Study Finds Disparities in Access and Incentives

A new UCLA study finds that while California has made progress in electric vehicle adoption, disadvantaged communities remain underserved in EV incentives, ownership, and charging access, requiring targeted policy changes to advance equity.

March 9 - UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation