Sacramento, CA – Today, Golden 1 Center earned an honorable mention in the sixth annual Fast Company “Innovation By Design” Awards. The world’s most sustainable and technologically-advanced sports venue was selected as a leader in the Spaces, Places & Cities categories. The Sacramento Kings partnered with AECOM, a global leader in global high-performance buildings, infrastructure and urban design, to bring a world-class facility to the region. Golden 1 Center’s LEED Platinum achievements make the venue stand out as the only sports facility on this year’s list.
In less than one year, the home of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings has become the city’s communal fireplace – a gathering ground for the city to celebrate, enjoy a robust entertainment calendar and admire world-class art. The arena anchors a six-square block entertainment and lifestyle district, home to retail, restaurants, 45 luxury residences and The Sawyer, a one-of-one Kimpton Hotel. The two-year development of the venue has ignited the region’s economy, created over 4,000 permanent jobs, become a home for over 200 performing and community events, and earned Sacramento national attention.
“Creating a communal fireplace for Sacramento was a key goal when we began developing Golden 1 Center and Downtown Commons in 2013,” said Kings Owner and Chairman Vivek Ranadivé. “Thanks to the incredible leadership team, designers, architects, contractors and construction workers, we now have a place for the community to gather and a global example of how sports teams can invest in their cities for good.”
The recognition is the second from Fast Company this year – the magazine named the Sacramento Kings the “Most Innovative Company in Sports” in February. The “Innovation By Design” recognition will be printed in Fast Company’s annual design issue and hit newsstands on September 19. The team will also be honored at Fast Company’s Innovation Festival in New York the week of October 23.
Since opening the innovative new Golden 1 Center nearly a year ago, the team has been recognized by a range of organizations for their groundbreaking efforts to raise the bar on sustainability and technological innovation. In July, the Kings won the “Sports for Climate Action” Award and in June, CNBC recognized the Sacramento Kings’ efforts to redefine the sports and entertainment experience through technology. Golden 1 Center also hosted sport and sustainability executives at the seventh annual Green Sports Alliance summit, who honored the team as one of 12 “Environmental Innovators of the Year” for their sustainability efforts. And earlier this year, Golden 1 Center was named “Sports Facility of the Year” by Sports Business Journal and the team topped the list of SportTechie’s “25 Most Tech Savvy Sports Teams.”
The Kings have continued to experiment with innovative ways to revolutionize how the team interacts with their fans and community. Recently, Vivek Ranadivé announced a public-private partnership to create an autonomous vehicle testing lab in the City of Sacramento. By creating a home for testing, the autonomous vehicle industry can begin creating a common standard that cities and car manufacturers can use to ensure safe operation, testing and implementation.
Read more about the Spaces, Places and Cities honor here.
