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Arizona Athletics has installed an automatic, solar-powered gate at one of the high-activity areas at Arizona Stadium.

By University Communications
February 27, 2009

University of Arizona employees coming in and out of a secured area at Arizona Stadium will no longer have to worry about whether they remembered to shut the gate.

The sun will shut it for them.

In an effort to be more Earth-friendly, Intercollegiate Athletics has installed an automatic solar-powered gate at the northeast corner of the stadium, which is a high-traffic area.

The decision to replace the once-manually operated gate with a solar-powered gate was a matter of security and efficiency.

The gate is "used by various campus operating units who had evidently been assuming it would be closed and secured by somebody coming in after them," said Steve Kozachik, the associate director of athletics, facilities and project management for Intercollegiate Athletics.

"The result had been that the stadium was left unsecured after hours on too regular of a basis.

The department, Kozachik said, considered an electric gate, but he decided to install a solar panel to correspond with the University-wide commitment to sustainability.

Other Earth-friendly measures taken by the department include more energy-efficient lighting at McKale Memorial Center and the softball stadium.

The department, which is also looking at the possibility of lighting upgrades elsewhere, is committed to pursuing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, certification for all new construction, Kozachik said.

"The athletics department is trying to do its part and cut down on utility use," Kozachik said.

The department is also in the process of  working with Facilities Design and Construction to develop a design for providing solar-heated water to the newly constructed diving well at the Hillenbrand Aquatic Center

"It's kind of a new thought process for everybody," Kozachik said about the decision to use solar energy. "So anytime we have the opportunity, we'll take a peek at how we can do that."