KENT, WASH.—The City of Kent, Washington now boasts one of the greenest event centers in the country. The ShoWare Center—a 154,000-square-foot multipurpose arena that is home to the Seattle Thunderbirds hockey team as well as a regional venue for sports, entertainment, concerts and trade shows—was recently awarded LEED Gold-NC (new construction) certification. Designed by Seattle-based LMN, the ShoWare Center is the first newly constructed event center in North America to achieve the LEED Gold rating.
“It was exciting to be given the opportunity to help advance sustainable approaches in a new market sector,” says LMN design partner Mark Reddington. “Event centers in particular present a significant need for creative and ambitious water and energy efficiency measures as well as responsible environmental choices. In achieving LEED Gold, we have created a model of high performance sustainable design for other spectator sports and events facilities to emulate.”
Sustainable design features that contributed to the LEED Gold certification include:
• A variety of water-efficient features, including dual-flush toilets and low-flow fixtures, that will lead to an estimated 40 percent savings in water usage.
• Energy smart lighting, heating and cooling systems, including the ice-making equipment, which is predicted to reduce energy use by 37 percent over the national standards.
• A rainwater collection system that uses water obtained from the roof to replenish the existing wetlands adjacent to the center”s site. The parking area is constructed over a layer of gravel, which will help hold stormwater runoff and provide controlled release of rainwater back into the drainage system.
Modest Budget, Tight Timeline
The ShoWare Center design is also a great example of what can be achieved working within a modest budget and even tighter timeline—the project was completed in just 27 months, as a result of focused teamwork with the contractor, early bid packages and quick response to ongoing construction questions. The design team creatively addressed the budget challenges by using simple materials in unconventional ways to make a dynamic and interactive space that respected the city’s budget, but also effectively reflects the essence of the Kent community.
One of the most visible applications of this creativity can be seen before visitors even step foot inside; a giant sloping, stainless steel soffit is angled to provide a mirror of the activity and excitement of a busy plaza and events space to patrons approaching the facility and community passersby.
Painted “energy lines” on the ground, highlighted by LED lights at night, lead event-goers toward the venue’s main entrance. Oversized hockey-puck-shaped structures serve as benches and meeting places, representing the center as the home of Seattle’s hockey team. Inside, super-sized graphics, including jumbo section numbers and extra-large “people” symbols at restrooms, are playful elements of the design.
Natural Light Maximized
Also visibly differentiating the ShoWare Center from other “black box” event centers is the indoor exposure to natural light. The first-floor concourse level is surrounded by a glass façade that provides light to the public spaces within as well as makes the indoor goings-on visible to passersby outside. A portion of the upper club level is also bordered by large windows, with operable shutters made from airplane hangar doors; the light from these windows can travel all the way into the bowl of the arena.
Project partners included PBK as associate architect; Magnusson-Klemencic Associates, structural and civil design; Wood/Harbinger, mechanical design; Sparling, electrical design; and Mortenson Construction, general contractor.
Go to the ShoWare Center.
