The Greenest, Coolest Stadium: Toyo Ito On His Sun-Powered Stunner

The Photovoltaic Roof
Above all, the stadium's major victory is its use -- no, integration -- of solar panels. While photovoltaic panels can often be seen tacked on to building designs (a legacy of bad eco-architecture from the 1970s) the ones used on the Kaohsiung stadium are anything but an add-on.

Other stadiums have used solar energy, most notably the Stade de Suisse in Bern, with 2,808 solar panels. But Kaohsiung's is notable not only for its scale -- 8,844 -- but for the elegant way the panels have been cooked right into the design.

When he received the commission, Ito says using solar was the only requirement from the government client.

"Since solar panels were required for this project, I thought to use them to cover almost the entire stadium seating roof. The climate in Kaohsiung is subtropical. Therefore, in addition to functioning as an energy source, the solar panels are also used as a shading device to block direct sunlight.

"Ventilation for the spectators' seats has also been considered. This stadium has obtained the utmost utilization of natural energy."

The struggle against one-time-use white elephant status is complete: the stadium's roof alone justifies its existence to the surrounding community.

For the Solar Roof, Challenges -- and Opportunities -- Abound

Building an elegant, mellifluous roof out of solar panels was not easy, said Ito. "The construction of the roof was very difficult because each solar panel had to be fitted to the varying shape of the spiraling structure." And connecting the panels -- built by local manufacturer Lucky Power Technology -- to the stadium's electrical system and the local grid was also a serious challenge.

And the flowing design of the roof, as Lloyd noted, also means that the roof is not always optimal for catching the sun's rays.

Still, the payoff could be rather immense: when the stadium is not in use, its more than 8,000 panels are said to be enough to power up to 80% of the surrounding neighborhood.

Flickr user 美事樂拍

It's unclear how long it will be before the savings and eventually revenue from all that solar, however inefficiently positioned, will offset the cost of building the stadium -- an estimated $150 million.

But there are other, less tangible but significant benefits too: the beauty of the self-powered, open design has put Kaohsiung on the map, and put architects of all kinds of buildings, green or otherwise, on notice.

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