Vesterheim Commons Timbers

timber-commons8

Progress continues on the Vesterheim Commons building project
with the installation of the timbers!

The building structure uses mass timber frame construction, and Alamco Wood Products of Albert Lea, Minnesota, manufactured the components. Vesterheim Commons will be only the second building in Iowa to use mass timber components, and the construction pays homage to Norway’s use of renewable timber and its commitment to environmental sustainability.

Earlier this year, representatives from Vesterheim with Snøhetta architects and BNIM and McGough contractors traveled to the Alamco Wood Product facility to learn about the way they fabricate their products. They have an impressive resume of projects, and we’re glad to be included.

Vesterheim staff, trustees, and guests recently gathered at Vesterheim for a Topping Off event and signed a beam that will be placed in Vesterheim Commons. Topping Off is a Scandinavian tradition to acknowledge when the last beam is placed on top of a structure as it is being built.

Progress Gallery

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Need Help Now?

If you want to speak to someone about how you can support Vesterheim’s bold new future, call Diane Wagner or Kim Toussaint.

Diane Wagner: 563-382-9681 x103

Kim Toussaint: 563-382-9681 x105

A Re-imagined, Open, and Accessible Heritage Park

The first major project of the Strong Roots | Bold Future campaign is the re-imagining of Heritage Park, the outdoor exhibit and program space for Vesterheim’s 12 historic buildings. Heritage Park opened in summer 2021. Guided by the Snøhetta master plan, Heritage Park has been designed by Damon Farber Landscape Architects to be an accessible and open public space reminiscent of Norway’s forests and glades. Here, people can connect with one another amidst tangible historic buildings set in nature.

Beginning at the plaza that depicts the 1825 voyage of immigrants on the ship Restauration, meandering pathways will guide visitors around gentle glades, past a community amphitheater, and through the expanded parkwhere history comes alive by experiencing how Norwegian pioneers lived.

Special care has been given to create an environmentally sensitive community park with native plantings and woodlands appropriate to this Driftless Area of America’s Midwest, permeable pavers, and sustainable stormwater management.