The University of Hawaii Board of Regents approved a $30 million plan that includes expanding the seating capacity of the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex to nearly 17,000 in time for the start of the 2023 football season.

The second part of the plan is to move the track to the lower-campus grass practice fields.

“We always had a phase two,” UH athletic director David Matlin said. “It just kept morphing a little bit — 9,300 was never the goal; the goal was to get over 15,000. We knew it would take a few phases.”

The board on Thursday voted 9-1 in favor of the project, which will increase seating to 16,909 from 9,350. The university can now move forward with its plan, beginning with designing the expansion, Matlin said.

“We had hoped this project would be funded by the (Legislature) last session. It came down to the wire, and ultimately there was no funding for this project in the (state) budget,” UH President David Lassner added. “That’s why we collectively have come forward and do what we can. This is the best plan we could come up with.”

Gov. David Ige in July approved $350 million of state money allocated by the Legislature to go toward building the new Aloha Stadium in Halawa, as part of the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District. A new stadium, planned for 35,000 seats, won’t be ready for use until the 2026 football season, according to state officials.

Before a new Aloha Stadium can be built, the old structure must be demolished.

Also, Ige must sign off on an environmental impact statement. As of Thursday’s monthly Stadium Authority meeting, the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism was still reviewing the EIS.

The state has yet to send requests for proposals to preferred builders of the stadium or the proposed adjacent entertainment district. The builders have eight months to submit proposals, after which the state will have four months to choose the winning contractors. Actual construction is expected to take about two years.

State Sen. Glenn Wakai, whose district includes Halawa and other neigh­borhoods around Aloha Stadium, has been a consistent proponent of the NASED. But he said he supports the Board of Regents vote to expand Ching.

“I totally understand the sense of urgency and am glad that UH found the money to do this,” Wakai told the Honolulu Star- Advertiser. “Considering the slow pace of construction for Aloha Stadium, I support the idea of them taking control of their own destiny.”

Construction for the Ching expansion would begin in January and be completed by August 2023 in time for the start of the UH football season, according to UH. Rebuilding the track would start in May and be completed by May 2024.

Also, a soccer pitch is planned for inside the track, where Rainbow Wahine matches would be held. UH now plays its matches at Waipio Peninsula Soccer Stadium, more than 15 miles from the Manoa campus.

“It’s an exciting opportunity, and there’s an opportunity to make that happen now,” Matlin said. “That will be great for (UH soccer coach Michele Nagamine) and the Rainbow Wahine, even though Waipio has served us well.”

Before Thursday’s vote, Lassner told the regents the university is committed to maintaining its Division I status for football.

First-year regent Gabriel Lee was the only board member to vote against the two projects, while regent Wayne Higaki was absent.

“The next question is really, Do we want to control our destiny, or do we want to leave this in the hands of the state and hope for the best?” Lassner said. “It may come out great soon, but the history isn’t positive for prompt decisions and prompt action on this particular project.”

The design contract for the Ching Complex expansion is scheduled to be awarded in October, while the design contract for the track and field relocation will be awarded in December.

Teams and coaches affected by the construction will have to be creative in finding alternate sites for practice, Matlin said.

“It’s going to be tough when we have to relocate the practice, but the whole reason we’re doing this is once it gets done, it’s going to improve their situation,” he said.

The NCAA has a rule that FBS Division I football programs average at least 15,000 in attendance per game over a two-year period. Schools, including UH, are commonly granted waivers. But it is unknown how long the NCAA — and the Mountain West Conference, of which UH football is a member — would continue to accept the situation.

“Failure to demonstrate progress as this timeline unfolds will result in a series of NCAA sanctions ultimately leading to loss of Division I status,” former Gov. Neil Abercrombie wrote in testimony to the UH regents. “Such sanctions would include loss of scholarship slots, which would severely limit, if not cripple, recruitment ability for Coach (Timmy) Chang and his staff — an inexcusable undermining of his determination to bring the Warriors team to peak performance level.”

CONCEPTUAL PLAN FOR CHING COMPLEX SEATING EXPANSION

Phase 1

Seating Area Quantity Description / Notes

Mauka sideline 2,402 Existing Ching Complex grandstand

Makai sideline 3,399 InProduction Grandstand A — 19 inches per seat

Diamond Head end zone 1,990 InProduction Grandstand B — 19 inches per seat

Ewa end zone 1,239 Relocated bleacher system — 18 inches per seat

Makai hospitality structure 320 VIP

Total 9,350

Phase 2 Additional Seating

Seating Area Quantity Description / Notes

Remove Ewa end zone –1,239 Demolish existing grandstand

Abandon mauka sideline –2,402 Ching building press boxes to remain

New mauka sideline 3,400 New grandstand system and lanai

Mauka-DH corner 700 Extend and connect to mauka

DH end zone expansion 850 Extend and connect to existing

New Ewa end zone 5,200 New grandstand system

Makai-Ewa corner 350 Provide emergency vehicle access at ground level

Makai-DH corner 700 Provide pedestrian access at ground level

Net Total 7,559 Estimated total capacity of Phase 2 expansion

Total Phase 1 and 2 16,909 Estimated ticketed capacity

Source: University of Hawaii