oct-2017

34 35 NATIONALS PARK gallons of water per year, reducing overall water consumption by 30 percent.These and other energy saving characteristics helped it earn a LEED-Silver certification. Since opening, Stahl says that there have been continuous improvements and upgrades.“We al- ways look to make innovative enhancements, every year,”he states.“A lot of that is based upon our fans’ requests and the need to stay current with chang- ing technology.We’ve renovated our PNCDiamond Club and our center field Budweiser Brewhouse Restaurant.We’ve added additional bars around the building as well as redesigned concession stands to help improve line speed.We’ve built one of the largest team stores in major league baseball.We’ve added additional video boards and upgraded the televisions; we’ve enhanced the Wi-Fi network and the DAS cellular phone network. In 2015 we reno- vated our green roof to have a 6,000-square-foot garden.We use the produce from the roof in some of our clubs.We also converted some of our suites into theater boxes and reconfigured others to create small, exclusive clubs.” “And we’re always looking at ways to make this ballparkmore green-friendly and sustainable,” Stahl continues.“We have a com- posting programwithin the building that drives diverting waste from the landfill. A unique part of our com- posting program is we’re sending it to a local composting facility and it’s getting re-introduced back into the D.C. community by folks who can purchase that material at a home and garden center to use for their plantings. Being part of a change like that is very exciting for us.” “And we have an extraordinary amount of recycling. If there’s a trash can in this building, there’s a recy- cling can right next to it.We’ve tried to do a good job of educating our fan base about what the appropri- ate disposal methods are because we want to make sure that we’re making a positive impact on the environment. Being LEED-certified has been a big driver of some of the decisions we’ve made and howwe operate.We’ve converted a lot of the building to LED lighting, and are continuing to do more.We’re always looking at opportunities as to how we can be more sustainable in our daily operations.” Stahl believes that one of the additional benefits of Nationals AT A GLANCE NATIONALS PARK WHAT: Home stadium of the Washington Nationals Major League Baseball team WHERE: Washington, D.C. WEBSITE: www.washington.nationals.mlb.com/was/ ballpark/index.jsp