WAIOLA DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS WITHDRAWS FROM NASED RFP PROCESS
Withdrawal Does Not Affect RFP Process
News Release from NASED, June 21, 2024
HONOLULU, HI – Today, the State of Hawai‘i Department of Accounting and General Services (DAGS) and the Aloha Stadium Authority announced that Waiola Development Partners, one of the priority-listed offerors selected to submit proposals for the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District (NASED) development, has withdrawn from the Request for Proposals (RFP) process. This decision does not affect the ongoing RFP process, and the new Aloha Stadium continues to be on track to open for the 2028 University of Hawaiʻi football season.
Waiola Development Partners (WDP), is a consortium comprising:
• 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 RFP was designed to accommodate the possibility of having only one offeror, and this withdrawal will not affect the ongoing RFP process,” said Brennon Morioka, Stadium Authority chair. “We are on track to meet all of the RFP milestones, and we look forward to welcoming UH football and the community back to Aloha Stadium in 2028.”
“The procurement process continues as planned, albeit with one Priority-Listed Offeror, Aloha Halawa District Partners (AHDP),” said Keith Regan, comptroller, DAGS. “AHDP will still be required to submit a proposal in accordance with the RFP, and the state will evaluate that proposal according to the provisions of the RFP. The proposal will be required to meet prescribed standards and requirements and demonstrate value to the state. If it does, then AHDP will be named as the “Preferred Offeror” and invited to participate in the Diligence and Discussion Phase, exactly as established in the RFP. In this third phase, AHDP will continue to be required to demonstrate that its proposal delivers value to the state and meets the project’s goals. We are confident that the final selection and agreement will ensure that the NASED project will be developed in the best interests of the state, the community, and Hawai‘i taxpayers. The NASED team looks forward to working with AHDP to deliver a successful project.”
“We thank WDP for its interest and active involvement in the process,” Regan added. “While WDP elected to withdraw, the consortium provided substantial input through the market sounding, qualifications, and proposals phases, which has helped to strengthen the RFP and the procurement process overall.”
AHDP is 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;
(CLUE: WCIT = Sen Donovan DelaCruz, see links below)
• Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company, Inc. and AECOM Hunt as the construction team; and
• Castle & Cooke Hawai‘i and Wilson Okamoto Corp as other team members.
The NASED team will continue to move forward with the proposals phase and its deadline this summer, with final execution of an agreement targeted for summer 2025.
For additional information about NASED, please visit the project website: http://nased.hawaii.gov/
---30---
March 28, 2024: Aloha Stadium Bidding Limited to Two Gangs of Insiders
FLASHBACK: The Secret History of the Mercado Kim Crime Family
WCIT / DTL BACKGROUND:
SA: 1 contender remains to develop new stadium -- “We are on track to meet all of the RFP milestones, and we look forward to welcoming UH football and the community back to Aloha Stadium in 2028.” (Said without even a giggle.)
According to the timeline, the state Department of Accounting and General Services and the Aloha Stadium Authority were to choose between Waiola Development Partners and Aloha District Partners this summer. After that, there is a nine-month window for the selected offeror to reach agreement on a contract to raze Aloha Stadium and build a replacement. “If” an agreement is reached, the project could begin next summer. (LOL!)
“It sounds like they had two bidders, and now they have one,” UH athletic director Craig Angelos said. “’Hopefully’, they’ll start negotiating with that one ‘whenever’ they get to that point. Then they’ll have the nine-month process of ‘trying’ to figure it out. ‘Hopefully’, they can get to a point where they finalize a contract. I feel very confident at that point, I’m told, once they get a contract (and) both parties know what the financial commitments are … that they’ll start working on it immediately.” (He apparently said all of this without even a smirk.)