Another meeting, another month closer to a new Aloha Stadium.
Thursday morning's regular Stadium Authority meeting at the end of the month was the penultimate meeting prior to a self-imposed deadline of June 30 between the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District (NASED) and Aloha Hālawa District Partners (AHDP) to execute a contract.
Tangible steps between April and May's meeting were made in order to build the new stadium, including a $9 million demolition permit filed by AHDP.
During Thursday's meeting, Stadium Authority chair Brennon Morioka clarified that the $9 million figure was a "placeholder." Organizers are hoping the permit gets approved in the summer prior to the beginning of demolition in August.
"Once all of that is known, we'll update the permit," Morioka told Aloha State Daily following the meeting. "And so dollar value, our guess is somewhere around $20 million or so is what it's probably gonna flesh out to be."
Both Aloha Stadium interim manager Chris Sadayasu and Morioka have stated that the self-imposed June 30 deadline for execution of a contract is also a placeholder of sorts in itself, and that negotiations could carry into July. The goal remains to have demolition start in August, to be completed in 10 months.
From there, having the new Aloha Stadium built in time for the 2028 college football season is the main objective.
All-hands meetings between members of NASED and AHDP are held every other week. Talks between the two parties remain cordial and productive, says Sadayasu.
"I think they're going really well," Sadayasu says of the discussions. "We are excited. We are close, but I think a couple of the business terms need to be ironed out. One of them is financing, and that's always been a challenge. But as the design is being refined, then they get to understand the true cost and then how much that they have to put in for above the $350 million (allocated by the state towards the project in 2019)."
"We're super excited," Morioka added. "I'm optimistic by nature. I think we're on progress to completing the contract execution documents over the summer. I've been a part of some of those meetings, and the tenor has been extremely collaborative and professional. You know, some of these kinds of negotiations can become contentious, but it has not been.
"And so I appreciate that level of professionalism on both sides, AHDP and our team, and so I think that's why we've been successful in negotiating through some of the very difficult terms. I'm pretty optimistic that we're going to get this contract execution done in a fairly timely manner."
The Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting (DPP) has also been briefed on discussions towards the new stadium.
Implosion was briefly considered as a demolition option, but Morioka says complications due to the heavy amounts of steel in the current complex made organizers opt for the 10-month plan.
When asked about the beginning of the demolition, Sadayasu said steel work on the makai side of the stadium while a dust screen is placed around the perimeter potentially could be one of the first items completed. Then in the summer of 2026, the race to having a new stadium by 2028 would be underway.
"It will be a challenge. The developer has indicated that, but they're going to do their best to make that," Sadayasu said of the target date of 2028.
Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
