By Ted Fischer
December 15, 2008

Petco Park is spectacular in every way, combining the best sights in baseball with the breathtaking views of San Diego. Architecturally magnificent, it celebrates sea, sky, natural beauty, cultural diversity and unique spirit of the region while also being sustainable. Innovative design features evoke the timeless tradition of baseball in an intimate setting, with a state-of-the-art facility for multiple interests. For the citizens of San Diego, recycling and conservation have become almost second nature.

The historic Western Metal Supply Company Building was chosen for the stadium site and with the renovation along with the addition of the surrounding park to the city skyline, in many ways represents the recycling efforts that the city is trying to accomplish. The 98-year-old structure houses the Padres Team Store on the first floor, with a door opening onto a standing room area in left field and in many ways could be classified as a Brownfield's redevelopment and cornerstone for growth within a sustainable community. MWMA Fall Summit participants were given a walking tour of the facilities and were able to view first hand recycling practices on and off the field. The Padres organization believes in making their facilities the greenest in the area. Not only are beer, soda, and other concessions recycled but left over food, boxes from deliveries and oil from the eateries as well. The project coordinator mentioned to the MWMA delegation that employees of Petco Park are also encouraged to bring in recyclables from home because they too can be recycled at the park's facilities free of charge. With recycling bins on multiple levels of the concourses and an environmental viewpoint, Petco Park has created an environmental friendly neighborhood that was once considered blight.

The delegation of MWMA members and meeting attendees also were given a walking tour of one of San Diego's most advanced water treatment facilities and the accompanying solar array. The City of San Diego has worked tirelessly on adapting their current infrastructure to new technological upgrades. The water treatment facility visited, was estimated by city engineers to take up to 7 years to return on their initial investment for the city. Today the facility which was developed by the city in a joint venture with Sun Edison is leading the way in helping the city manage its energy use. San Diego's strategy for managing it's power and energy consumption goes far beyond what is just done within it's city facilities. It sends out billing to its customers automatically through an electronic data exchange, the city analyzes its energy data so they can determine where the problems are located on the grid, and they have a long term goal of providing real time metering for the accounts with the largest energy usage. The City of San Diego has completed many projects through the California Energy Commission (CEC) which provides low interest loans for energy efficiency projects to the city and the surrounding community. For more information on the MWMA 2008 Fall Summit, please visit our website at usmayors.org/mwma.