No Team Yet, But L.A. Will Have the NFL's Greenest Venue

There is a very funny scene in The Simpsons episode "A Star is Born Again" in which clean-living widower Ned Flanders imagines, to his horror, how life in Los Angeles might unfold as a result of his romance with a famous movie actress.

In Ned's imagination, he meets Simpson's producer James L. Brooks on a Sunset Strip sidewalk. Brooks offers Ned some cake, which he then demonically adds that it includes a rum glaze. Brooks follows up by asking Ned if he'd like to go to a football game, and then, again in a diabolical tone, adds: "We don't have a team."

We're not sure how Ned feels about sustainable design, but the status of the country's second biggest city not having an NFL franchise to call its own is set to soon change in a very big and very green way.

Tipped off by Inhabitat.com which referred to an original article at ArchDaily, we learn that plans are moving forward for a brand new 75,000-seat NFL stadium15 miles east of downtown, which would be the very first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified venue among the league's roster. NFL.com reported last fall that California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the bill approving the construction of the new facility. It remains uncertain as to whether it will be an expansion team or a relocated existing team that will actually play in the space reportedly targeted for completion as early as the 2011 season.

Regardless of the matter of who will actually be suiting up, this project is shaping up to be the greenest of gridirons. Designed by architectural firm Aedas, the planned facility carries a big, $800 million price tag, but one that is still hundreds of millions below comparable current new stadium proposals. The site and facility design take into account a range of design solutions to minimize energy use, maximize on-site water reclamation, and incorporate recycled materials while keeping the use of new, virgin materials, particularly steel, to a minimum.

Photo courtesy of Anderson Mancini via flickr