Rebuilding New Orleans
Stay in 'green' house wagered on Super Bowl between New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts
THE TIMES-PICAYUNE. FEBRUARY 3, 2010. By Mark Schleifstein
Add a free stay in a "green living" showcase home in either New Orleans or Indianapolis to the list of wagers pending on the outcome of Super Bowl XLIV on Sunday.
"In the unlikely event that the Saints win the big game Sunday night," says the news release announcing the Hoosier Environmental Council's half of the bet, a Saints fan will be provided a stay at a green showcase home owned by Anne Laker and Joe Merrick in Indianapolis. The home features a geothermal heating system and an interior of bamboo floors, granite counter tops, carpets made with recycled contents and recycled glass, all chosen by Purdue University-Indianapolis students for the environmentally-friendly qualities.
The Saints fans will be provided a tour of the Indy Wine Trail, which features several wineries just outside Indianapolis, and will be feted to dinner for two at the R bistro, which uses environmentally-friendly, farm-fresh ingredients.
"We're happy to have two New Orleans natives, Peyton Manning and Reggie Wayne, leading the way to a Colts Super Bowl victory," said Jesse Kharbanda, the Hoosier Environmental Council's executive director, adding that the council is a beneficiary of the team's aluminum can program.
If the Colts win, the New Orleans office of Global Green USA will host a Colts fan on a Jazz Fest weekend in a home built with environmentally-friendly materials in its Holy Cross Project village in the Lower 9th Ward. The guests will be provided with tickets to the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and dinner for two at Galatoire's in the French Quarter.
"New Orleans, now the increasingly famous home of the Who Dat Nation, is also becoming one of the world's leading centers for green building," said Matt Petersen, President and CEO of Global Green, a non profit organization that advocates for sustainable, energy saving building practices. "Both the Saints and the city's neighborhoods fought to come back better than before Katrina."
The wager was instigated by Global Green's New Orleans staff. The organization was founded by Indianapolis native Diane Meyer Simon.
"I'm so proud of Global Green's work to rebuild New Orleans green, but on Super Bowl Sunday, my entire family and I will be rooting for the Colts so I'll look forward to welcoming a lucky Indy fan to New Orleans."
If the Saints win, the Indianapolis visit will be awarded to a Saints fan who donates $10 to Global Green by texting GREENDAT to 85944 at the end of the game's first quarter.
