Procurement
Market Sounding
Qualifications Phase
Proposals Phase
Diligence & Discussions Phase
Contract Award
Published on December 14, 2023, the Request for Proposals (“RFP”) outlined a three-stage procurement process aimed at securing contract(s) with a private developer entity to serve as the master developer for the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District (“NASED”). The master developer will be responsible for master planning and delivering NASED, which includes designing, constructing, operating, maintaining, and partially financing the new Aloha Stadium, developing and commercializing vertical developments within the district, and managing the design, construction, operation, maintenance, and financing of public spaces and supporting infrastructure within the district.
The period for submitting RFP responses has concluded, with the response deadline occurring on February 14, 2024.
On March 28, 2024, the state selected priority-listed offerors to proceed to the proposals phase of the RFP process.
In late June 2024 one of the priority-listed offerors (Waiola Development Partners) withdrew from the RFP process.
The withdrawal of Waiola Development Partners from the procurement process does not affect the overall timeline for the NASED Project. The state remains committed to opening the stadium by summer 2028. Key milestones included the Proposal deadline on July 31, 2024, the selection of the preferred offeror in late October 2024, and the finalization of technical matters and agreements by June 2025.
A summary of the procurement process can be found below.
Market Sounding
The NASED team hosted a market sounding webinar on June 14, 2023.
The intent of the market sounding webinar was to present the proposed new approach for the project and answer initial questions from the audience.
Following the webinar, the state published a Request for Information (RFI) on the NASED website which sought feedback from prospective offerors. Sixteen written RFI responses were received, providing robust market feedback. The state then conducted a series of one-on-one meetings with RFI respondents and other parties to gain additional industry insights regarding the project.
The Market Sounding Report and associated addendum (refer below) highlight the issues raised by prospective offerors in the Market Sounding process regarding the new approach, as well as the state’s approach to resolve these and deliver a successful, on-time project.
A copy of the Market Sounding Report can be found here.
As part of the ongoing efforts for the NASED Market Sounding phase, the State of Hawai‘i, Department of Accounting and General Services (DAGS) issued a second Request for Information (RFI-2) in November 2023 to help refine the procurement process. RFI-2 included several questions relating to the findings of the previously published Market Sounding Report in September 2023.
The State has concluded Market Sounding for NASED.
A copy of the NASED Market Sounding Report Addendum published in December 2023 can be found here.
To view a copy of the Market Sounding Report, click HERE.
To view a downloadable pdf version of the market sounding webinar presentation, click HERE.
To view a video recording of the market sounding webinar, click HERE.
To view a downloadable pdf version of the Request For Information (RFI-1) document, click HERE.
Qualifications Phase
Published on December 14, 2023, the Request for Proposals (“RFP”) outlined a three-stage procurement process aimed at securing contract(s) with a private developer entity to serve as the master developer for the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District (“NASED”).
Key features of the RFP included:
- The Master Developer will be responsible for designing, building, operating, and maintaining the new Aloha Stadium with a minimum of 25,000 seats, premium suites, a club lounge and loge boxes. The Master Developer will be entitled to generate revenue to support stadium operations and maintenance by marketing the stadium during the limited number of dates not reserved by the State for UH and High School football and related events.
- The expectation is that the Master Developer will design and build the new stadium using allocated state funds and, potentially, Master Developer funds for any additional stadium enhancements.
- The Master Developer will also have the right and obligation to develop a portion of the surrounding district into a mixed-use development in line with the state’s vision of a live, work, play, and thrive community replete with residential units, commercial and retail spaces, hotels, gathering spaces, and other enhancements. Revenue from such development may supplement allocated funds for the stadium construction and to fund ongoing operating and maintenance costs.
- This approach utilizes the current appropriation of $400 million and has the objective of transferring responsibility for containing construction and maintenance costs to the private sector, thereby reducing the risk and financial burden on local taxpayers. The private sector also benefits from the revenue upside of its own effective and compelling utilization of the new Aloha Stadium.
- The state will retain fee ownership of all the land comprising the NASED site. The state will also own the new Aloha Stadium and all of the district infrastructure improvements.
PRIORITY-LISTED OFFERORS SELECTED FOR NASED
On March 24, 2024, the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District (NASED) announced that it had selected two (2) priority-listed offerors that would be considered to develop and operate the new Aloha Stadium and surrounding entertainment district as one integrated public-privatepartnership (P3) project. The selection and notification of the priority-listed offerors occurred earlier than scheduled, marking the end of the qualifications phase and commencement of the proposals phase.
The developer-led teams that were priority-listed included:
Aloha Halawa District Partners (AHDP), a consortium comprising of:
- Development Ventures Group, Inc., Stanford Carr Development, LLC, Ameresco, Inc., and Aloha Stadium Community Development, LLC (The Cordish Company) as the lead equity members;
- RMA Architects, Populous, SB Architects, Henning Larsen, Alakea Design Group, and WCIT Architects as the design team;
- Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company, Inc. and AECOM Hunt as the construction team; and
- Castle & Cooke Hawaii and Wilson Okamoto Corp as other team members.
Waiola Development Partners (WDP), a consortium comprising of:
- EllisDon Capital, Inc., BSC Acquisitions II, LLC, and Kobayashi Group LLC as the lead equity members;
- Design Partners Incorporated, MANICA Architecture, PA, and Stantec Architecture, Inc. as the design team;
- Nan, Inc. as the construction team; and
- Machete Group, ES CON Sports & Entertainment, Biederman Redevelopment Ventures, SSFM International, Inc., Rider Levett Bucknall Ltd., SHADE Group LLC, and PBR Hawaii & Associates, Inc. as other team members.
The selection of the priority-listed offerors followed the strong response NASED received after it issued its Request for Proposals (RFP) in December 2023. The response deadline for the qualifications phase concluded on February 14, 2024, and the responses were subsequently scored by a specialist evaluation committee selected by the state for the NASED project. This committee was composed of a mix of state employees and subject-matter experts from the development industry.
Proposals Phase
NASED PROPOSAL RECEIVED FROM AHDP
On July 31, 2024, the state Department of Accounting & General Services and the Stadium Authority announced that they had received a proposal from the sole Priority-Listed Offeror, Aloha Halawa District Partners (AHDP), in response to the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District (NASED) Request for Proposals (RFP).
NASED is utilizing a “progressive” procurement approach due to the complexity of the project, and AHDP’s proposal will proceed through all phases of the procurement. The state’s established evaluation committee, supported by technical advisors, began its review of the proposal to determine whether it complied with the RFP and demonstrated acceptable value for money to recommend AHDP as the preferred offeror for State Comptroller approval by September 2024. If the proposal had not met the RFP evaluation criteria, the state retained the right to terminate the procurement process and not award the project to any offeror.
AHDP is a consortium comprised of:
- Development Ventures Group, Inc., Stanford Carr Development, LLC, Ameresco, Inc., and Aloha Stadium Community Development, LLC (The Cordish Company) as the lead equity members;
- RMA Architects, Populous, SB Architects, Henning Larsen, Alakea Design Group, and WCIT Architects as the design team;
- Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company, Inc. and AECOM Hunt as the construction team; and
- Castle & Cooke Hawai‘i and Wilson Okamoto Corporation as other team members.
NASED APPROVED AHDP AS PREFERRED OFFEROR
On October 31, 2024, the state Department of Accounting and General Services and the Stadium Authority announced the approval of Aloha Halawa District Partners (AHDP) as the preferred offeror for the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District (NASED) and that the NASED process is on track to open the new Aloha Stadium for the 2028 University of Hawaiʻi football season. The state now enters into a nine-month diligence and discussion phase to address a range of technical and other project matters.
Diligence and Discussions Phase
The diligence and discussion phase is underway to finalize negotiations for a range of technical and other matters.
This phase of the procurement includes outreach by AHDP with the surrounding community and other key stakeholders to present further details of its proposal and gather feedback.
Contract Award
Final execution of an agreement is targeted in 2025.
