On January 19, AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami will relaunch its 23,000-sf East Plaza, which has been retrofitted into a solar pavilion whose canopy includes 14 circular translucent panels that utilize Building Integrated Photovoltaic solar technology.
This transformation is the result of a business partnership between The Miami Heat professional basketball team, which plays at the Arena, and NRG Energy. Last year, AmericanAirlines Arena became the first sports and entertainment facility in the world to be recertified as LEED Gold.
The Heat Group manages this 16-year-old arena, which is county owned and sits on city-owned property. The Heat Group purchased the canopy from NRG, which hired Skanska as the retrofit project’s general contractor. DLR was the architect and structural and MEP engineer.
Jim Spencer, AmericanAirlines Arena’s Vice President of Operations, tells BD+C that the solar pavilion provides a practical answer to the question of how to get more bang out of the open-air East Plaza, which looks onto Biscayne Bay but was being used sparingly because of Miami’s hot, humid, rainy weather conditions.
John Vidalin, The Heat Group’s Chief Revenue Officer, adds that these conditions severely limited the facility’s ability to attract sponsoring partners to that area. (Levy Restaurants is the pavilion’s food and beverage partner, and Barcardi, which is already an arena sponsor, will host a horseshoe-shaped bar in the pavilion’s atrium.)
The canopy offers shade and cover to the East Plaza, and the solar panels, which are 16 to 24 ft in diameter each and take up 5,000 sq ft of cover space, will provide an offset to the arena’s energy consumption. Vidalin and Spencer say the pavilion extends the stadium’s footprint and reinforces the building’s certification story. (All of the furniture in the Plaza are made from recycled milk jugs.)
The canopy, says Spencer, is supported by 12 columns, five of which feature 360-degree nanolumen LED displays. The Heat Group has sold the entitlement rights for the Plaza to Xfinity, Comcast’s high-speed Internet and on-demand service, which will deploy full WiFi for the Plaza and has built an 8x12-ft X-1video wall, where visitors can engage with an activation team and a variety of sports and music streaming events.
The pavilion will be open for all of the arena’s sports and concerts. Vidalin says the canopy now makes the Plaza more attractive for conducting other revenue-generating functions like corporate and charity events, group sales, and post-game parties. “It’s really going to be an elegant space,” he says. He adds that the Arena’s ongoing energy efficiency improvement—which included upgrading its building management and HVAC systems to achieve LEED Gold—is a strong selling point for sponsors.
Vidalin had previously worked with NRG when he was with the Houston Texans and San Francisco 49ers football teams. He notes that the East Plaza pavilion allows the energy company, which hadn’t operated in Miami before this, to “plant its flag” in the city, which is a gateway to Caribbean and South American markets.
“We are in the midst of a social movement that demands attention to clean energy,” says David Crane, NRG’s former chief executive. “As the world’s perspective on energy continues to evolve, it will be critically important for business leaders—foreign and domestic—to see and invest in the incredible potential [of] renewable energy, especially built with a design aesthetic in mind.”
Related Stories
| Aug 15, 2016
SPORTS FACILITY GIANTS: New and renovated college sports venues - designed to serve students and the community
Schools are renovating existing structures or building new sports facilities that can serve the student body and surrounding community.
| Aug 15, 2016
Top 30 Sports Facility Engineering Firms
AECOM, Thornton Tomasetti, and ME Engineers top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest sports facility sector engineering and E/A firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 15, 2016
Top 60 Sports Facility Construction Firms
Mortenson Construction, AECOM, and Turner Construction Co. top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest sports facility sector construction and construction management firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 15, 2016
Top 50 Sports Facility Architecture Firms
Populous, HKS, and HOK top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest sports facility sector architecture and A/E firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
High-rise Construction | Aug 1, 2016
Rising to the occasion: Dubai shows some pictures of proposed 500-step structure
Still in the planning stages, this building would serve tourists and power climbers alike.
Sports and Recreational Facilities | Jul 31, 2016
Shanghai’s latest tourist attraction: an outside, rail-less walkway around one of its tallest skyscrapers
For less than $60, you can now get a bird’s-eye (or window-washer’s) view of the cityscape.
Sports and Recreational Facilities | Jul 20, 2016
San Diego’s waterfront redevelopment would go beyond a mere ‘project’
Its developers envision a thriving business, education, and entertainment district, highlighted by a huge observation tower and aquarium.
Sports and Recreational Facilities | Jul 20, 2016
Chicago Cubs unveil plans for premier fan club underneath box seats at Wrigley Field
As part of the baseball team’s larger stadium renovation project, the club will offer exclusive food, drinks, and seating.
Events Facilities | Jul 19, 2016
Houston architect offers novel idea for Astrodome renovation
Current plans for the Astrodome’s renovation turn the site into an indoor park and events space, but a Houston architect is questioning if that is the best use of the space
Sports and Recreational Facilities | Jul 18, 2016
Turner and AECOM will build the Los Angeles Rams’ new multi-billion dollar stadium project
The 70,000-seat stadium will be ready by the 2019 NFL season. The surrounding mixed-use development includes space for retail, hotels, and public parks.