Story at a glance:
- Populous designed this Seattle arena with the future in mind, with sustainable strategies like rainwater harvesting that directly benefits hockey.
- The design team got creative when it comes to brainstorming sustainable strategies that would work in Seattle.
- Climate Pledge Arena is the first arena in the world to achieve Zero Carbon Certification from the International Living Future Institute.
There is a major arena in downtown Seattle that is like none other. Designed by global architecture firm Populous, Climate Pledge Arena is the first arena in the world to achieve Zero Carbon Certification from the International Living Future Institute.
The 17,000 capacity arena opened in 2021 but continues to be an example of the possibilities when it comes to arena and other spectator spaces. Living walls, rainwater harvesting, and the elimination of single use plastics are just some of the many sustainable strategies on display in and around the building.
“We were very intentional about the ways we thought about sustainable design with Climate Pledge,” says Geoff Cheong, a senior principal at Populous, who specializes in multipurpose entertainment venues.
He points to the example of rainwater harvesting used in the project. “That strategy only works if a number of things come into perfect alignment. If you need that water at a time of year when it doesn’t exist, it doesn’t make any sense to explore a strategy like that.” But in a place like Seattle where, during fall and winter you get the majority of rainfall, that happens to align perfectly with the NHL hockey season.
Rain to Rink
Populous-designed Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle is the first arena in the world to achieve Zero Carbon Certification from ILFI. Photo by Ema Peter
A “rain-to-rink” system collects water from the historic roof—it dates back to the 1962 World’s Fair—into a 15,000-gallon cistern that sits under the west plaza of the arena and is then brought into the facility all the way down to the event level, or about 50 feet below the street. It’s then purified and pumped into the electric Zamboni and used to resurface the ice—the greenest ice in the NHL. “It’s a really incredible story and strategy, and we’re always excited to share about it,” Cheong says.
Water is conserved in several other ways at Climate Pledge Arena, too. All concourse restrooms utilize waterless urinals, for one. The site design also includes onsite stormwater retention for landscaping, and native plant species that require less watering and maintenance are used extensively throughout the project.
Saving History for the Future
Rainwater is collected from the arena’s roof, pre-filtered to remove any debris before entering a large underground cistern, and then released when needed into a smaller tank at the arena’s event level. There the water goes through a reverse osmosis purification system before being pumped into the electric Zambonis used for ice resurfacing. Photo by Ema Peter
“Saving the roof was the result of incredible collaboration between Populous and Thornton Tomasetti, the project structural engineer,” Cheong says.
He says the team designed a temporary shoring system to suspend the roof in a floating state while the original foundations were demolished. While suspended, nearly a million tons of earth was excavated and removed from the site to make room for the new arena’s expanded subterranean footprint, which extends well beyond the dripline of the historic roof. “New concrete foundations were then poured, and permanent support columns extended upward almost 50 feet so they could be reconnected to the 44-million-pound roof—a true architectural and engineering feat.”
He says creative and sustainable engineering resulted in the repurposing of elements of the temporary shoring system to build another temporary support system later in construction—one that supported the 270-foot-long press box bridge that spans over the arena’s west upper deck seating.
More Sustainable Strategies
Photo by Ema Peter
Zero waste initiatives, touchless technology, and LED lighting are more sustainable strategies seen throughout the arena. The venue is also home to a 200-foot living wall with greenery hanging overhead—an Amazon vision Populous brought to life. Amazon is the arena’s naming rights partner, and the Climate Pledge was the name of the mega retailer’s goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040—a goal they achieved seven years early.
The best sustainable designs, including this one, often inspire awe, and designing for a dramatic first impression was also always part of the goal, Cheong says. “As guests enter Climate Pledge Arena through the Alaska Airlines Atrium, they’re presented with an 8,500-square-foot immersive, high-definition digital backdrop adorning the atrium’s walls, ceiling, and vertical structure. Alongside our client (Oak View Group), we imagined the arena’s entry as a canvas for immersive digital art that transforms night-to-night and allows visitors to have a unique and tailored experience from one event to the next.”
Like at many venues, the design for Climate Pledge also embraces highly efficient self-serve and touchless technologies for food and beverage experiences. “It drastically reduces queue lines and elevates the customer experience and impression of the venue by allowing guests to be away from their seat for less time,” Cheong says.
Plentiful greenery is just one of many sustainable strategies inside the Climate Pledge Arena. Photo by Alex Fradkin
The design for Climate Pledge Arena included Camatic seating in part for its sleek and flexible design. Photo by Alex Fradkin
