Brennon Morioka is the new chair of the Aloha Stadium Authority board — new in title only, that is.
As acting chair, Morioka has been the board’s leader since last summer, when former Chair Ross Yamasaki’s term on the Stadium Authority ended.
Morioka and new Vice Chair Eric Fujimoto were both unanimously approved by the board at Thursday’s monthly meeting.
Stadium Authority board members are unpaid appointees by the governor who serve four-year terms.
Until now Morioka — who was previously vice chair — had recused himself from consideration for the permanent top spot. He was concerned his job as dean of the University of Hawaii’s College of Engineering would be a conflict of interest. The UH football team plans to play its home games at the new Aloha Stadium, as it did until the 2020 season at the old one, which has been shut down.
The Warriors played the last two seasons on campus at the Clarence T.C. Ching Complex, where they will continue to play until the new Aloha Stadium is built. Until recently, state planners aimed at 2027 as its completion date. Gov. Josh Green amended that to 2028 last week.
The fact that UH President David Lassner is also on the stadium board, and speculation that the university would play a major role in building and/or running the new Aloha Stadium, added to a potentially awkward situation.
Those concerns were
diminished, though, when Green in March announced plans for private-sector entities to design, build, operate and maintain the new
stadium.
“Now that I think we know, or what I am hearing, is that UH will not be a part of the actual delivery (of a new stadium) … I did have a conversation with President Lassner, and he felt comfortable about (him assuming the chair),” said Morioka, who added that he would continue to recuse himself from votes having to do with UH.
Stadium manager Ryan Andrews has had “regular conversations” with UH athletic director David Matlin, Morioka said, to ensure that “when we build a new stadium, it’s favorable to both parties.”
Fujimoto is a private wealth adviser who has served on the Stadium
Authority board since
2020. He said he wants
to expedite the new stadium project by building
a coalition.
“I’m going to listen. I
want to make sure we have enough people aligned with the mission,” he said. “I want to hear that we have enough common ground to build a first-class arena. I’ll be a fantastic listener.”
That means helping to convince other state entities and private contractors to buy in to Green’s new plan.
“Our next step is a follow-
up meeting with all … executive, legislative,” Morioka said.
He and other state officials and planners who attended recent meetings have said a final agreement is close.
Questions remain how quickly needed adjustments to previous planning can be made so contracts can be awarded and work started. Other still-unknowns are how much of the mixed-
development concept of
the New Aloha Stadium
Entertainment District will remain, and what quality of stadium can be built with the available funding.
