Alki Elementary School, mass timber

Alki Elementary School is a three-story structure nestled in the heart of a West Seattle neighborhood, adjacent to an existing community center and within walking distance to Alki Beach. The facility utilizes cross-laminated timber (CLT) decking and a glulam beam and column structure accompanied by buckling restrained braces. The CLT is showcased via exposed ceiling conditions throughout the building’s corridors and commons areas. 

Built on one of Seattle's smallest school district sites, this replacement school maximizes constrained urban conditions while achieving 30% embodied carbon reduction compared to conventional steel construction. CLT was attractive to Seattle Public Schools as a design and structural element that would not only achieve their sustainability goals but also their desired architectural vision. 

Project Highlights:

• Performed detailed comparative cost studies between 3-ply and 5-ply CLT systems, optimizing for an 11'x28' structural grid that reduced timber volume by over 30%

• Executed flawless deliveries on severely space-constrained site with no laydown area, requiring precision logistics

• Coordinated mass timber installation while protecting existing gymnasium and adjacent community center operations

• Leveraged prefabrication strategies to enhance moisture protection during rainy season erection