Americanairlines Arena Awarded Prestigious Leed® Green Building Certification

April 8, 2009 - PRLog -- MIAMI, FL – The American Airlines Arena, Miami’s top sports and entertainment venue and home of the 2006 NBA Champion Miami HEAT, announced today that it has been awarded LEED Certification for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).  LEED Certification is the USGBC’s leading rating system for designing and constructing the world’s greenest, most energy-efficient, and high performing buildings.  

The American Airlines Arena and the Philips Arena in Atlanta received LEED certification on the same day, and were the first two arenas in the country to receive this prestigious designation by the USGBC.  

“Achieving LEED certification is a great affirmation of the American Airlines Arena’s commitment to energy conservation and environmentally responsible operations,” said Eric Woolworth, president of The HEAT Group’s Business Operations.  “Being the first arena in the U.S. to be LEED Certified, we hope to inspire businesses of all kinds to think green and make a positive impact on our earth.”

Woolworth was joined at a press conference at American Airlines Arena by City of Miami Mayor Manny Diaz and Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO & founding chair of the U.S. Green Building Council.

"The American Airlines Arena is a catalyst for all Miami businesses to invest in a greener future,” says Mayor Diaz.  "The Arena’s commitment to the Earth and our community paves the way for other companies in downtown Miami to follow that path and make a lasting difference.”

“The American Airlines Arena’s LEED certification is a tremendous achievement that will bring significant energy and water savings – and, in turn, huge cost savings,” said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO and Founding Chair, USGBC. “LEED-certified green buildings create much-needed green jobs and have a positive impact on their communities – especially when that building is visited by thousands of sports fans and entertainment lovers every year.”

From an operational side, American Airlines Arena worked with key vendors such as Waste Management and Dade Paper to ensure the LEED certification process would be a success.  Waste Management is the presenting sponsor for Green Initiatives at AmericanAirlines Arena.

“Without the help of Waste Management we would not have been able to achieve LEED certification,” says Woolworth. “They deliver progressive renewable energy programs that make it easy for AmericanAirlines Arena to think and act green.”  

The American Airlines Arena, originally built in 1999, used the LEED Certification for Existing Buildings Rating System as a road map to achieve the coveted LEED certification.  The Operations & Maintenance Rating System is a set of voluntary performance standards for the sustainable ongoing operation of buildings, and includes a number green design and construction features that positively impact the project itself and the broader community.  For the AmericanAirlines Arena, some of these features include:

•   Green roofing materials: The Arena’s solar reflective index is high enough that it reflects heat and reduces the energy needed to cool the building.
•   Energy consumption: The Arena was built without a chilled water plant, which requires a lot of energy, therefore, there is much less energy consumption as the Arena’s chilled water comes from an off-site source.
•   Water-efficient landscaping: All plants are high to medium drought resistant, and a “drip and soak” irrigation system (micro irrigation) runs under the surface delivering water directly to the roots and minimizing the amount of water evaporated by the sun.
•   Underground parking: Reduces heat-trapping asphalt to trap heat, which is known to cause a “heat-island effect” which releases heat back into the atmosphere.
•   Walk-off carpets: Trap dirt and contamination of Arena guests to improve overall indoor air quality.

To find out more about upcoming events, sponsorships and the latest news at American Airlines Arena, visit www.aaarena.com or call 786-777-HEAT.

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About American Airlines Arena
Since its opening on December 31, 1999, the 19,600-seat American Airlines Arena has hosted such diverse musical superstars as U2, Madonna, Cher, Gloria Estefan, Andrea Bocelli, Luis Miguel, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Usher, Marc Anthony, Phish, Shakira and Paul McCartney. The Arena has become South Florida’s number one entertainment destination with championship events in boxing, wrestling and gymnastics as well as rodeos and family shows such as the Harlem Globetrotters, Disney On Ice, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, The Wiggles and WWE.
American Airlines Arena has also played host to several live televised events including the 2004 and 2005 MTV Video Music Awards, Britney Spears’ “Onyx Hotel” Tour, Cher’s “Living Proof – The Farewell Tour” and the prestigious Latin Grammy Awards, each placing Miami in the international spotlight.