Instead of today’s underused and rusting 50,000-seat facility, the Aloha Stadium Authority sees a vibrant future for a smaller stadium surrounded by development, which could include restaurants, shops, housing and easy access to the city’s rail line.

Its recommendation to build a facility with 30,000-35,000 seats that could expand to 40,000 for special events makes more sense than holding on to the 42-year-old stadium, which rarely fills to capacity. The move would certainly create a more intimate setting at sports events and concerts, for example, and yield lower operating costs.

But before any deal is sealed for public-private development plans, a deed restriction put in place five decades ago must be lifted.

Much of the stadium’s 100-acre Halawa site is limited to recreational use due to an agreement with the U.S. Interior Department that turned over 56 acres of land to the city to build the stadium. Unfortunately, the provision has essentially blocked development near the stadium, which occupies 11.5 acres, and a vast parking area — dashing opportunities to build mixed-use neighboring areas, thereby contributing to the site’s overall deterioration.

On Thursday, the stadium authority voted in favor of a resolution calling for construction of the scaled-down stadium in advance of any ancillary development that would undoubtedly help underwrite the area’s makeover. Such a call helps avoid a cart-before-the horse predicament should the state’s ongoing efforts to lift federal and city deed restrictions on the property hit a snag.

The stadium authority’s recommendations, which come about 3-1/2 years after public debate heated up on whether to repair or level Aloha Stadium, were relayed to Gov. David Ige and state lawmakers, who are now expected to decide whether to launch development planning by way of the request-for-proposal process.

The stadium authority presents a strong argument for starting fresh rather than going the repair route. It points to a recent state study concluding that $300 million in health and safety repairs are needed. If unaddressed, repair costs are expected to grow at a scary clip of about 7 percent a year. If the Legislature were to allocate repair money at a piecemeal pace over a few decades, the pricetag for extending the stadium’s life would skyrocket. By comparison, recent estimates on the cost a new stadium have varied from $200 million to $300 million, depending on selected deck structures, materials used, amenities and when the stadium is built.

Whatever the pricetag, though, the state should aggressively pursue a public-private partnership as the vision moves toward the tangible.

Even a new publicly owned stadium should require some private investment. As the Legislature convenes for its regular session Wednesday, lawmakers are bracing for a year of budgetary shortfalls. Given the ever-growing demands for state funding for operations ranging from public transportation to schools, it can ill afford to build a new stadium on its own, and a well-designed facility would benefit the businesses around it.

Two recent studies offer rough-sketch proposals including: a multipurpose stadium with premium seating for both sports and other entertainment events. Such a facility also could complement some of the aging Blaisdell Center venues. Edging the stadium grounds could be retail, dining, entertainment, housing, hotel and office development. Also, a multilevel parking structure could be located near the proposed rail-transit station.

The transit station could be key to allowing a larger number of people to visit the area without clogging the already busy area streets. And the city’s planned TOD (transit-oriented development) site near the station could bring much-needed affordable housing opportunity.

As the vision for Aloha Stadium’s future continues to take shape, successful redevelopment of the site will hinge on careful public-private planning with realistic goals.