Case Study
Sacramento Entertainment and Sports Centre

When new owners took over Sacramento's basketball team the Sacramento Kings they promised a state-of-the-art new arena to replace the Eighties' version, and recruited AECOM to help deliver the ultimate fan experience - Arena 3.0.

AECOM has come up with a unique 'inside outside' design that opens up the complex to the city surrounding it - distinctly different from the usual American 'closed bowl' in the suburbs' solution - and used parametric design tools to ensure that every fan gets a great view of the game. For example, 10,000 of the 17,000 seats are placed in the 360-degree lower bowl to bring fans closer to the action.

The main concourse is on top of this lower bowl, dispensing fans directly from the entrance to their seats, and features a range of new restaurants along with the new plaza out front, many of which will be 'farm to fork' establishments using herbs grown in the arena's planted wall at its base.

A displacement air system pumps cool air from slots under the seats, providing maximum comfort on hot summer days but keeping the carbon footprint low. Furthermore, a vast array of photovoltaics is planned to power the arena, with additional features for the management of storm water. As well as LEED Gold, the stadium aims to be the first major arena to meet California's 'Title 24' energy requirements.

The $447m building has a curved facade made of silver aluminium and glass panels, creating a dramatic impact on the new plaza at the front.

The facade is perforated or embossed with tree and leaf patterns - a reference to the city's plan to plant a million trees. Says AECOM's design principal Rob Rothblatt: 'The facade design is a series of pushes and pulls.

It hides some of the service elements while allowing views in, and enables us to address the introversion of a typical sports arena.'

The grand gesture, however, is the five 18m-high hangar doors that open on to the plaza and surrounding development, inviting the neighbourhood in on the sports action and acting as a driver for regeneration.

Client Sacramento Kings with the City of Sacramento
Architecture and interiors AECOM
Construction Turner Construction
Cost $447m
Completion 2016

Case Study
Hilton at Ageas Bowl

EPR Architects put the finishing touches to a very modern cricket ground in May 2015: a new Hilton hotel and spa overlooking the pitch of Hampshire Cricket Board's flagship stadium in Southampton, the Ageas Bowl. The final part of a 15-year master plan to improve and upgrade Southampton's ageing facilities involved a relocation and new stadium, completed in 2001.

The Hilton and its adjacent stands have been positioned to continue seamlessly around the stadium to form a low-level simple roofline, contrasting with the iconic pavilion, with its tensile roof and masts. Timber louvre-screen facades give an organic softness to the bowl's appearance and provide continuity across the structures.

Materials reflect the site's location and history, using predominantly timber and steel, and complement the parkland setting.

The hotel's 171 guest rooms, executive lounge, and spa are joined by a 700-seat conference and banqueting facility, with views overlooking the ground. With hospitality expert EPR responsible for the entire site's masterplanning, as well as hotel and stand design, the architects have ensured a holistic and integrated aesthetic across the site, conveying a kind of upmarket 'resort' atmosphere. Even before the hotel opened, the venue had secured Test Match Cricket games in 2011, and went on to host two one-day internationals in 2015.

Client Ageas Bowl/ Southampton Hotels
Architecture and Master planning EPR Architects
Value £45m
Size 1,250 sq m (hotel building)
Stands architect Miller Partnership
Interior design Falconer Chester Hall