In 2020, the Beachie Creek fire tore through the forested hills east of Salem, Oregon, destroying communities across the region. Among the losses was Tyler and Deana Freres’ beloved family cabin, a cedar-clad retreat set among century-old trees on a bluff above the Santiam River.
When it came to the question of how to move forward, the couple chose not to simply replicate what had been lost but look to the future. "The decision to rebuild was a long one," says Deana. "We wanted to show that we believed in the community, that we cared enough to put a second stake in the ground." |
Tyler’s family business, Freres Engineered Wood, was also preparing to launch its mass plywood panel product—a prefabricated structural element made of veneer that can replace traditional stick wood framing—and the new cabin offered an opportunity to showcase the potential of the material. The couple turned to Portland-based Skylab Architecture, with principal Susan Barnes leading the design. "We really used the house almost as a test case for the use of the mass plywood, both structurally and finish," says Barnes.
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The gabled design draws on the traditional form of the previous cabin, but reimagines it with a more contemporary silhouette and pared-back material palette of timber, metal, and glass. Vaulted ceilings formed entirely from those mass plywood panels lend the main living spaces a striking sense of volume, heightened by custom polygon Marvin Ultimate windows at the gabled ends.
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The material choices were strategic as well as visual. Mass plywood panels char slowly rather than burn, buying time in the event of a fire; fireproof insulation wraps the exterior; shou sugi ban cladding provides additional spark resistance; and a metal roof prevents ember intrusion. With no conventional framing or open attic cavities, there are fewer places for embers to take hold.
"It’s a modern-day log cabin, but with all the benefits that technology and science and manufacturing can get for you," says Tyler. |
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