Postcard | An arena like a work of art

(Seattle) In the opinion of those who have visited, Seattle is one of the most interesting destinations in the American West, and perhaps even in the country as a whole.

Simon-Olivier Lorange
Press

This cradle of grunge is obviously a must-have for music lovers. But the strength of the “Emerald City” is also its cultural turmoil, its architecture, its sporting offer, its culinary scene, and so on. All this on the edge of the Pacific.

However, contrary to some popular belief, going there to cover the Canadian is anything but a vacation. And going there in October, all the more so, is going to face the greyness and the fall rain typical of the West Coast, from San Francisco to Vancouver. Nothing ideal, in short, to write the postcard requested by the director of the sports section of the largest French daily in America.

However, the meeting of the useful and the pleasant came about quite naturally. Renovated at a cost of US $ 1 billion, the Climate Pledge Arena, home of the Seattle Kraken, has become a must-see for sports fans visiting the city.

The place is absolutely sumptuous. You should know that the arena, rather than having been erected in height, was dug into the ground. From the outside, it doesn’t look like much, it’s true. But inside, the enclosure is neither more nor less than spectacular, in particular because of its glass panel which, at the top of the bleachers, gives directly on the Seattle Center, vast multifunctional park made up of green spaces, museums and performance halls, which you cross on foot to reach the amphitheater.

An intimate atmosphere was created by limiting the capacity to just over 17,000 spectators for the hockey games. And two giant triangular screens face each other at both ends of the ice. The beautiful and the luxurious are everywhere.

In addition, the name of the establishment does not refer to the name of a famous aerosol cleaner, but to the commitment to the climate that Amazon, holder of the rights to the name of the building, wanted to underline – some would say that the company wanted to forget its disengagement with its employees, but let’s move on.

Thus, we pride ourselves on being “the most progressive, responsible and sustainable arena in the world”. Nothing less. We are aiming for complete carbon neutrality and the abandonment of fossil fuels in all departments, we avoid the use of single-use plastics and we place a strong emphasis on minimal waste production. Supporters (and journalists!) Are therefore invited to recycle and compost their rubbish on site. A green wall on the west side as well as an icy surface made from rainwater complete the offer. All the initiatives are not yet fully implemented, but they are promised within a few years.

For work or as a simple fan, I have visited about half of the arenas in the NHL to date. There is no doubt that the Climate Pledge Arena is on the short list of the most beautiful on the circuit. And if, in addition, it breaks with the century-old tradition of sports complexes which are ecological disasters, it is all the more difficult not to like it.