Establishment of baseline FTE for a Transient Facility:This Washington, DC Major League Ballpark experiences a transient population roughly 81 times per year on "event" days only (a ballgame). The project team developed a calculation to determine the number of Full Time Equivalents that would become the baseline for the bicycle racks and showering facilities required. The team originally took the full time building population (250 occupants at 8 hours per day/total person hours per day/260 annual days of occupancy/total person hours per year) and a part-time population count based on the number of fans that would be attending an event in equivalent hours (35,000 avg. game attendance at 4 hours per day/total person hours per day/81 annual days of occupancy/total person hours per year) for a total FTE of 5702 occupants.Bicycle Racks Calculation:With a baseline FTE of 5702, the total number of bike racks required to satisfy the credit requirements are: FTE = 5702 * 5% = 286 bike racks required.Original Solution:In order to support bicycle transportation as a viable means of accessing the Ballpark, the District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) is donating 286 bicycle storage racks which will be located around the ballpark site, convenient to multiple points of entry (within 200 yards). Secure bicycle storage is provided in the garage for full time employees. The Ballpark team submitted documentation to this effect on July 30, 2007. In addition to 286 racks on site, DDOT will be installing racks on surrounding blocks, however the exact number and location is not determined at this time. The Ballpark team felt this met the intent of the credit by supporting the use of bicycle transportation to and from the Ballpark, however the credit was denied in the design phase review (with request for clarification).Design Phase Review Response:"The LEED Submittal Template has been provided claiming that the project has provided bicycle storage and shower facilities for 5% of the FTE building occupants. For this credit, the peak number of transient occupants should be included in the FTE occupant count. For a ballpark, transient occupants will be at the stadium at the same time, so the peak occupancy should not assume a diversity factor, but should include all guests and staff that are likely to be at a ballpark during a sold-out game.TECHNICAL ADVICE: Please provide revised FTE occupancy calculations that account for transient visitors at peak occupancy. The calculations should include the peak number of transient visitors expected to visit the building at any given time."Revised Calculation:If we add the peak attendance of 41,000 (sold out game) plus 250 FTE, the credit would require 2,064 bicycle storage spaces. According to the Executive Director of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA), this exceeds the bicycle storage capacity at Amsterdam Central Station and would constitute about a linear mile of bicycles. The WABA has over 7,000 members, yet the Executive Director remarked that providing nearly 300 storage spaces is already probably in excess of need, let alone over 2,000.The Ballpark team also finds 2,064 permanent storage spaces to be excessive for numerous reasons:The LEED Rating System (and this credit) was originally developed to address commercial office buildings. Whether by bicycle, private car or public transit, both FTE and Transient populations typically arrive at buildings of this type individually rather than in groups (unless they are carpooling, which is addressed by another credit). Ball games tend to be social events, primarily attended by groups of people rather than by individuals. The Ballpark project has already been approved for an exemplary performance ID credit under Transportation Management Plan for its plentiful access to public transportation and for not providing public parking.While the Ballpark team does anticipate some individual attendance at games (a portion of which may arrive by bicycle), there is no evidence to support the expectation of anywhere close to 2,000 cycling attendees. Indeed, the San Francisco Giants stadium provides a bicycle valet for 150 bicycles and is only currently storing up to 125 bicycles on game days.The Ballpark team feels providing an excessive amount of permanent storage at this time is contrary to the general underlying environmental intent of the credit. The production of these racks will require the use of materials - both raw and recycled - in addition to the energy that will be used to manufacture and transport the racks. If the San Francisco stadium is any indication, only about 6% of the 2,064 racks would be used.2,064 racks will also require a large amount of land to be set aside for this use, and on a compact urban infill site the Ballpark team does not feel providing racks in large excess of demand constitutes the highest and best use of the land.An alternative solution has been developed, one the Ballpark team feels bridges the gap between providing permanent storage capacity for 2,064 bicycles and our original proposal of 286.Alternative Solution:The Ballpark team proposes to continue with installation of 286 permanent bicycle storage racks and to provide an additional bicycle valet service on game days. This is a more flexible and environmentally sensitive solution to permanent racks, and can be quickly responsive to growing demand.We propose to model our Ballpark bicycle storage capacity both on that of the San Francisco stadium and on the LEED-EB Rating System. In addition to 286 storage spaces, the Ballpark will offer valet service initially for up to 150 bicycles. The WABA has agreed to provide valet service. The Ballpark owners have agreed to offer \'ride-to-the-game day\' promotions that will encourage the use of bicycle transportation through reduced price game tickets on certain dates. At special events such as this, the bicycle valet capacity would be increased beyond 150 to anticipate larger demand.The peak demand will be monitored and valet service capacity will be increased every season that there is an increase in peak usage so that the bicycle storage capacity is maintained at 125% of the peak demand for bicycle parking until a maximum bike storage capacity of 5% of the peak building users is reached (or 2,064).ConclusionThe unique nature of this project type requires a creative approach to this credit. We feel that by committing to providing a combination of permanent storage and a storage service that will enable Ballpark employees and visitors to bicycle to work and games, we are meeting the intent to reduce pollution and landscape development impacts from automobile use.