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Changing the Footprint of Downtown Kitchener with New Technology

In 2020 we marked One Young Street as Waterloo Region's first new mass timber building. Canadian wood was fabricated into glulam columns and nail-laminated timber panels by Timmerman Timberworks in Ontario.

One Young Street in downtown Kitchener, with mass timber structure visible through the upper glass facade.

Building with wood is not a new idea. In 2020, what was new was the technology that made wood work as structure at a commercial scale.

Canadian wood from Canadian trees was turned into glulam columns and nail-laminated timber (NLT) panels by Timmerman Timberworks at their Ontario facility. The result is a building that combines the natural warmth and beauty of wood with the technology and conveniences of a modern workspace. One Young Street is the first new mass timber building in Waterloo Region.

One Young Street at a downtown Kitchener street corner, with a glass facade and a patterned lower wall.
One Young Street in downtown Kitchener.

Brick and beam character, in a new building

It has the benefits people look for in a century brick-and-beam building: exposed wood, tall ceilings, and the character of loft space. It is modern, without the complications of an older structure.

Interior lounge at One Young Street with exposed glulam beams, NLT ceiling panels, and contemporary seating.
Exposed glulam and NLT in a shared interior space.
A bright workspace at One Young Street with glulam columns, an NLT ceiling, and floor-to-ceiling windows onto downtown Kitchener.
A modern workspace with exposed mass timber.

One Young Street is a unique space in Kitchener-Waterloo's downtown.