Event Planners

Our Commitment to Eco-Focused

The Minneapolis Convention Center (MCC) is committed to assisting our customers in achieving their sustainability goals for meetings and conventions, as well as recognizing the importance for our facility, customers, employees and community. The following sustainability efforts are currently underway at the MCC.

Solar

The solar array on the rooftop of the MCC is connected directly to the facility's internal electrical system, producing 750,000 kWh of renewable electricity per year - the equivalent of powering 85 homes. It will offset 539 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually. The 600 kW system is made up of 2,613 panels installed at an angle on the flat portions of the roof and are not visible from the street level. This largest solar electricity array in the Upper Midwest has been in use since November 2010.

The photovoltaic system is owned and operated by the developer and privately financed. The City of Minneapolis has locked into a long-term contract with a fixed energy cost as a hedge against future energy price increases. This will stabilize annual budget fluctuations over the life of the system.

After a request for proposals and a very rigorous selection process, the City chose a local development team led by developer Best Power International and Westwood Professional Services, a renewable energy design and engineering firm that designed and built the 1,820-panel solar array at St. John's Abbey and University. The $2 million Renewable Development Fund grant and federal tax incentives for renewable energy make the project possible without any capital investment by the City. The system is owned by Best Power Int'l, which leases the roof for the system from the City of Minneapolis. All of the equipment was manufactured in the U.S., and local electricians and roofing technicians trained on the installation. Overall, this project generated approximately 30 jobs including development, design and construction.

The solar panels will give the convention center yet another dimension to the many efforts already serving clients who look more and more for a facility operating sustainably. With the addition of this solar array providing about 5 percent of its power, the Minneapolis Convention Center now receives 15 percent of its electrical energy from renewable sources.

Read about the Minneapolis Convention Center Solar Project

Watch a video now about the solar installation!

Recycling

Multi-stream containers collect waste throughout the facility. We recycle the following items at MCC:

- Cardboard
- Cans
- Glass
- Plastic Bottles
- Paper
- Wood
- Carpet
- Metal
- Yard Waste

Did you know?

In 2010, our $3.3 million roof replacement featured 100 percent recycling and reuse of existing roofing materials. The insulation was preserved and reused, the rubber membrane was recycled and the ballast rock went into landscaping and road-work projects.

Catering

The MCC's exclusive catering company, Kelber Catering, contributes to the sustainability efforts at the MCC in several ways:

- Locally sourced produce used whenever available
- Food prep waste recycled through Second Harvest Farms and used to feed hogs
- Surplus food product is collected and donated through People Serving People, St. Paul Evangelical Food Mission and Kid's Cafe
- Reusable china and biodegradable dishes, cups and flatware are used 100 percent of the time in catering and biodegradable products are used 95 percent of the time in the concession stands, Dunn Bros. and other cash outlets
- Bulk condiments used whenever possible
- Upon request, Kelber will assist in planning menus using locally grown, organic products

Did you know?

Each year, MCC sends about 140 tons of food waste to the food-to-hogs program, and another 9 tons of food is donated to local charities.

Conservation of Resources

- The heating and cooling systems are monitored 24 hours-a-day, 7 days-a-week to ensure event spaces are only conditioned when in use
- The lighting system is computer controlled and event space lighting is adjusted to various levels based on occupancy
- Most escalators are powered on only during event hours
- All air handling equipment operates with high efficiency motors and variable speed drives
- Exterior doors are monitored and staffed during event load-in and load-out to conserve conditioned air
- Restroom fixtures are equipped with low-flow and automatic shut-off devices to conserve water and sewer resources
- Restrooms feature automatic-flush commodes and urinals
- The terrazzo floor throughout the lobby areas has been refinished to allow maintenance free from waxes, sealers and stripping chemicals

Cleaning Products

- 95 percent of cleaning products are Green Seal certified
- Restroom cleaning and sanitizing performed by a single machine utilizing Green Seal-certified agents to substantially reduce chemical use

Cleaning Equipment

- Floor care equipment utilizes FaST (foam scrubbing technology) to reduce chemical application by using 87 percent less chemicals than traditional floor scrubbers
- Terrazzo floor care machines by Tennant utilize ECH2O ionization technology to clean hard surfaces without chemicals
- These machines also use 70 percent less water than traditional floor care equipment - we estimate the riding scrubber used on our concourse floors uses 15,330 gallons less water annually than a non-FaST scrubber

Green Your Event

The Minneapolis Convention Center has a partnership with Boulder, Colo.-based Renewable Choice Energy as the first convention center in the United States to offer meeting planners and conventions Green Your Event packages to balance the environmental impact of event-related emissions and electricity use.

These packages include certified renewable energy credits (RECs) generated by wind farms or other renewable energy projects across the United States and Canada and verified carbon offsets from projects that reduce carbon emissions entering the atmosphere. Green Your Event will be offered by meeting planners and conventions, and purchased by event attendees.

A Green Your Event purchase will offset a percentage of the attendees' electricity use along with travel to and from the event, while supporting the generation of renewable energy and carbon mitigation projects. This option will be offered to all conventions who wish to participate and is completely optional for meeting planners and their attendees. View a fact sheet here.

Renewable Choice Energy is a leading national provider of renewable energy credits (RECs) and verified emission reductions (VERs) (carbon offsets) to hundreds of Fortune 500 Companies and small businesses, thousands of residential customers, and over 850 LEED green building projects in the U.S. For more information or to Green Your Event, visit Renewable Choice Energy online at http://www.renewablechoice.com.