Redevelopment of Aloha Stadium shifts (again) as Green rejects original plan

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - After years of prep and millions of dollars spent on planning, the project for a new stadium will now head in a different direction.

A smaller development may be in the future of Aloha Stadium.

Gov. Josh Green says he will not move forward with plans to build a new stadium and a surrounding district through a public-private partnership, otherwise known as P3.

That’s because the state’s consultant Goldman Sachs believes that going with a public-private partnership could cost at least $400 million.

The state legislature has set aside $350 million so far, and is hesitant on spending more anytime soon.

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Green told Civil Beat on Thursday that P3′s price tag is “just too large.”

Instead, he wants the state to hire a project team to design and build the stadium, before operating and managing it.

House Speaker Scott Saiki is also skeptical of the P3 model.

He said he doesn’t want the stadium to end up like the rail project, which tried a public-private partnership but failed.

On the other hand, State Sen. Glenn Wakai said he’s disappointed.

He said without private investment, the $350 million from the state could only buy a stadium with 20,000 seats.

The original Aloha Stadium, which just had its goodbye event this past weekend, had 50,000 seats.

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