tlongII
04-09-2010, 02:30 PM
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2010/04/trail_blazers_rose_garden_gets.html
http://media.oregonlive.com/business_impact/photo/recyclebinjpg-64f0214ad15f19f3.jpg
Adallberto Mu-oz rolls one of Trail Blazers’ new recycling bins into a locker room at the Rose Garden. The bins, designed by building staff and built out of recycled plastic at Promens’ Ridgefield, Wash., plant, include compartments for composting and recycling as well as trash.
Turns out the Trail Blazers have been remodeling more than just their roster in recent years.
The team's owners and Rose Quarter building managers have spent the last five years on green upgrades of the Rose Garden, including more efficient lights, more recycling and composting, improving heating and air conditioning systems and reducing the environmental impact of purchases, from beer to drywall to carpet.
The changes helped Oregon's largest entertainment destination earn a gold rating from the U.S. Green Building Council earlier this year, the only sporting venue in the nation to reach that level.
At a home game against Dallas Friday, the Blazers are celebrating that award as part of the National Basketball Association's "green week."
Fans will notice the debut of locally built bins made of recycled plastic that allows them to send food, drinks and compostable plates, cups and utensils to a composter instead of a landfill.
Sarah Mensah, the team's chief marketing officer, said managers decided about five years ago to do a "complete overhaul" of the Blazer's brand. Those changes included pursuing better- behaved players after a long run of controversies.
With employee encouragement, they also included steady reductions in the Rose Garden's environmental footprint, better aligning the 15-year-old, 765,000-square-foot arena with Portland's green ethic.
"We didn't want to rush out to be part of the 'green revolution' without having a legitimate way to walk the talk," Mensah said.
Some of the changes are visible to fans: the new recycling and composting bins instead of garbage cans, more bike parking away from congested parking garages, more locally produced and organic food and drink.
But many aren't. Arena building managers swapped 647 lights in parking garages, truck loading docks and staging areas for higher efficiency lights equipped with occupancy sensors. They added more meters for electricity and gas to better track use.
The arena increased its "diversion rate" -- the amount of waste recycled or composted -- from 38 percent in 2007 to 63 percent in 2009, in part by putting out more recycle bins, educating employees, boosting composting and having workers separate recyclable items from trash left in the arena after fans leave.
Employees get a 30 percent discount on transit passes on average. They recycle metal, electronics, DVDs and Styrofoam at work -- and can bring those items from home, too. And the arena is asking suppliers to make their products more environmentally friendly.
Darby Hoover, a senior resource specialist for the Natural Resources Defense Council, works with stadiums across the country. The Rose Garden is "making efforts across the board," she said. "They're not just doing the fan outreach. They're doing the behind the scenes work, too."
The Blazers hope the project will educate and inspire fans, and encourage suppliers, other business owners and other arenas to follow suit, Mensah said. Building managers also tried to stick to projects that made good business sense, said Chris Oxley, the Rose Quarter's general manager.
With Oregon tax credits and energy efficiency subsidies, the lighting improvements will pay off in a year through reduced energy bills, Oxley said. The efficient lights are also more durable, meaning less time spent swapping out bulbs. Compostable materials cost half as much to dispose of as garbage.
"There's a bottom line to this," Oxley said. "We're not going to spend money on things that don't make sense."
The team has only installed 60 of the latest low-flow plumbing fixtures, for example, done as part of a remodel. The arena's fixtures are relatively new and efficient, Oxley said, and the return on investment isn't there yet for a wholesale change.
Oxley said the Blazers are exploring more changes. They may add solar panels to generate some electricity on site. They're studying new ways to reduce water use, and considering rain gardens that would keep storm runoff on site instead of sending it into storm sewers.
Mensah wouldn't say how much the Blazers have spent on the initiative. It's not in the millions, she said, though it could get there if the arena opts for solar panels.
With 1.4 million visitors a year to games, concerts and other events, the arena's annual carbon footprint is sizable: about 20,000 tons a year, about 1,000 times the per person CO2 emissions in the United States.
Much of that load comes from people driving to games. But the green building council gave the arena high scores for its central location and having a light rail station nearby. About 30 percent of visitors get to games by mass transit, walking or bike, the Blazers say.
The arena rated among the highest in its class for energy efficiency, said Scot Horst, a senior vice president at the council.
It also won points for its white, heat-reflecting roof, for water efficiency, waste management, using green cleaning supplies and renewable energy. The arena pays extra for green energy programs from Pacific Power and Northwest Natural.
Horst, who will attend the Blazers game and ceremony tonight, said it's important for arenas to go green. They can create enthusiasm among fans for green practices, he said. And they generate a lot of waste.
"I'm looking forward to going to a game," he said, "and not just throwing tons of stuff away."
http://media.oregonlive.com/business_impact/photo/recyclebinjpg-64f0214ad15f19f3.jpg
Adallberto Mu-oz rolls one of Trail Blazers’ new recycling bins into a locker room at the Rose Garden. The bins, designed by building staff and built out of recycled plastic at Promens’ Ridgefield, Wash., plant, include compartments for composting and recycling as well as trash.
Turns out the Trail Blazers have been remodeling more than just their roster in recent years.
The team's owners and Rose Quarter building managers have spent the last five years on green upgrades of the Rose Garden, including more efficient lights, more recycling and composting, improving heating and air conditioning systems and reducing the environmental impact of purchases, from beer to drywall to carpet.
The changes helped Oregon's largest entertainment destination earn a gold rating from the U.S. Green Building Council earlier this year, the only sporting venue in the nation to reach that level.
At a home game against Dallas Friday, the Blazers are celebrating that award as part of the National Basketball Association's "green week."
Fans will notice the debut of locally built bins made of recycled plastic that allows them to send food, drinks and compostable plates, cups and utensils to a composter instead of a landfill.
Sarah Mensah, the team's chief marketing officer, said managers decided about five years ago to do a "complete overhaul" of the Blazer's brand. Those changes included pursuing better- behaved players after a long run of controversies.
With employee encouragement, they also included steady reductions in the Rose Garden's environmental footprint, better aligning the 15-year-old, 765,000-square-foot arena with Portland's green ethic.
"We didn't want to rush out to be part of the 'green revolution' without having a legitimate way to walk the talk," Mensah said.
Some of the changes are visible to fans: the new recycling and composting bins instead of garbage cans, more bike parking away from congested parking garages, more locally produced and organic food and drink.
But many aren't. Arena building managers swapped 647 lights in parking garages, truck loading docks and staging areas for higher efficiency lights equipped with occupancy sensors. They added more meters for electricity and gas to better track use.
The arena increased its "diversion rate" -- the amount of waste recycled or composted -- from 38 percent in 2007 to 63 percent in 2009, in part by putting out more recycle bins, educating employees, boosting composting and having workers separate recyclable items from trash left in the arena after fans leave.
Employees get a 30 percent discount on transit passes on average. They recycle metal, electronics, DVDs and Styrofoam at work -- and can bring those items from home, too. And the arena is asking suppliers to make their products more environmentally friendly.
Darby Hoover, a senior resource specialist for the Natural Resources Defense Council, works with stadiums across the country. The Rose Garden is "making efforts across the board," she said. "They're not just doing the fan outreach. They're doing the behind the scenes work, too."
The Blazers hope the project will educate and inspire fans, and encourage suppliers, other business owners and other arenas to follow suit, Mensah said. Building managers also tried to stick to projects that made good business sense, said Chris Oxley, the Rose Quarter's general manager.
With Oregon tax credits and energy efficiency subsidies, the lighting improvements will pay off in a year through reduced energy bills, Oxley said. The efficient lights are also more durable, meaning less time spent swapping out bulbs. Compostable materials cost half as much to dispose of as garbage.
"There's a bottom line to this," Oxley said. "We're not going to spend money on things that don't make sense."
The team has only installed 60 of the latest low-flow plumbing fixtures, for example, done as part of a remodel. The arena's fixtures are relatively new and efficient, Oxley said, and the return on investment isn't there yet for a wholesale change.
Oxley said the Blazers are exploring more changes. They may add solar panels to generate some electricity on site. They're studying new ways to reduce water use, and considering rain gardens that would keep storm runoff on site instead of sending it into storm sewers.
Mensah wouldn't say how much the Blazers have spent on the initiative. It's not in the millions, she said, though it could get there if the arena opts for solar panels.
With 1.4 million visitors a year to games, concerts and other events, the arena's annual carbon footprint is sizable: about 20,000 tons a year, about 1,000 times the per person CO2 emissions in the United States.
Much of that load comes from people driving to games. But the green building council gave the arena high scores for its central location and having a light rail station nearby. About 30 percent of visitors get to games by mass transit, walking or bike, the Blazers say.
The arena rated among the highest in its class for energy efficiency, said Scot Horst, a senior vice president at the council.
It also won points for its white, heat-reflecting roof, for water efficiency, waste management, using green cleaning supplies and renewable energy. The arena pays extra for green energy programs from Pacific Power and Northwest Natural.
Horst, who will attend the Blazers game and ceremony tonight, said it's important for arenas to go green. They can create enthusiasm among fans for green practices, he said. And they generate a lot of waste.
"I'm looking forward to going to a game," he said, "and not just throwing tons of stuff away."