With the help of lawmakers, Hawaiʻi Theatre Center, the nonprofit that operates the iconic Hawaiʻi Theatre in Downtown Honolulu, is seeking a lifeline from the state to purchase the property and pay off its mounting property insurance premiums.
No purchase is imminent. The state Legislature has approved a resolution to talk about the possibility of buying the and maintaining the building, where the nonprofit would continue to manage its programs.
SCR131, which passed the Senate on April 15, urges “the state to acquire the Hawaiʻi Theatre to promote local culture and arts, preserve its historic and cultural significance, and facilitate its continued public use.”
The resolution notes, the state “has invested approximately $30 million in public grants and assistance for the renovation and preservation” of the theater. It also reads, “public ownership of the Hawaiʻi Theatre by the state would ensure its long-term preservation, allow for necessary renovations and improvements, and expand access to arts and cultural programming for residents and visitors alike.”
According to Hawaiʻi News Now, State Sen. Karl Rhoads – who co-wrote the resolution with State Sen. Chris Lee – and Culture & Arts Committee Chair Jeanne Kapela said taxpayers could end up subsidizing the operation and maintenance – but that it’d be worth it, in their view.
Rhoads told Aloha State Daily by email, “Having a venue like Hawaiʻi Theatre brings benefits to the local community and the whole state above and beyond the costs involved. These include increased economic activity around the theatre, more positive activity in the neighborhood and the intangible, but real benefits of preserving Hawai‘i’s unique culture for generations to come.”
Hawaiʻi Theatre serves about up to 100,000 patrons annually, its website notes, with about $4 million in revenues in 2023, per ProPublica.
President and CEO of Hawaiʻi Theatre Center Gregory Dunn testified in support of SCR131, saying that during his tenure, he has expanded the theater’s programming. “However, we have been challenged this year with a massive 4,500% increase in our property insurance premiums over the prior year's premium. This massive financial burden makes it nearly impossible for the theater to continue to provide an affordable venue for local arts and cultural organizations to present their programming.
“In Fiscal Year 2023-24, we paid around $2 per $1,000 of property insurance coverage. In FY2024-25, we were forced to pay $90 per $1,000 of property coverage, and our base policy was limited to only $5 million dollars, significantly short of the $45 million dollars of coverage we were previously able to secure.”
According to testimony from Hawaiʻi Theatre Center Board of Directors Vice Chair L. Richard Fried, “This resolution will begin the discussion of the state's acquisition of the theater and a lease back to the nonprofit.”
ASD reached out to Hawaiʻi Theatre Center for comment.
Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros can be reached at kelsey@alohastatedaily.com.
