Oahu residents still have a long wait before glimpsing any real change in the look of the old Aloha Stadium site, but starting this week, some of the fog obscuring the plans will start to lift.

That’s a relief, because the public at least needs to hear details of the new strategy for redeveloping the stadium, now reasonably downsized to a 25,000-seat, expandable facility. Along with the mixed-use development also envisioned on the 98 acres, the project is known as the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District (NASED).

At issue is how, and whether, it will avoid the pitfalls of the past that led to the facility’s severe deterioration.

Development teams have until Wednesday to submit proposals to design, build, operate and maintain the stadium and develop the surrounding property. In reality, it’s all but certain that approval could come ahead of schedule for Aloha Halawa District Partners because it is the last development team standing.

The public-private committee of industry experts convened by the state comptroller to evaluate Aloha Halawa’s proposal is expected to finish that task ahead of the Sept. 30 deadline because that date anticipated the need to review at least one more competitor.

The old, 50,000-seat stadium was all but shuttered in late 2020, when the Aloha Stadium Authority determined safety concerns with the structure could not be overcome. The loss of revenue due to COVID-19 restrictions did not help, either.

But it was the lack of sustained maintenance for the 50-year-old stadium, paired with flaws in the stadium design itself, that doomed the facility to obsolescence. What was dubbed the “Rust Palace” earned the moniker because of its construction using “weathering steel.” It was meant to limit the effect of Hawaii’s corrosive salt air, but it didn’t fulfill that function.

How the development partners propose to avert a repeat scenario has to be addressed plainly by the new partners in their proposal, which should be made public in advance of its final approval.

The state configured the request for proposals to require that the developers, not the state, will be responsible for both the operation and maintenance of the facility. The private partners will be responsible for handling all financing beyond the $350 million in appropriated state funding.

That means the state’s role is amended to something similar to a landlord or asset manager rather than that of a direct manager, said Ryan Andrews, the stadium manager and authority board member. That could work better, as long as the new authority rides herd on the private partners to be sure sufficient revenue is allotted to its upkeep.

This part will be complicated by the fact that the larger private enterprise with its lucrative development rights for the mixed-use build-out of residential, retail and entertainment properties, is expected to take longer to materialize. Careful oversight of the process would be part of the state’s duties, too.

Critics of the NASED proposal have said a new stadium is not the highest and best use of state land, many pointing to affordable housing as the principal public need to be met.

The inclusion of significant numbers of housing units affordable for Oahu’s workforce is plainly in the public interest.

But it’s also a desirable goal to create a vibrant and commercially successful complex. This includes a stadium of an appropriately modest size, as proposed, that can accommodate a range of athletic and community events. Striking a reasonable balance here is key.

The state has the chance to bring life to an underutilized area and must not squander that opportunity.