Our Aloha Stadium Wishlist
Hālawa will be undergoing major changes over the coming decades. Here’s what we want to see.
Renderings of what the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District could include. Rendering: Courtesy of Aloha Hālawa District Partners
Renderings of what the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District could include. Rendering: Courtesy of Aloha Hālawa District Partners
Renderings of what the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District could include. Rendering: Courtesy of Aloha Hālawa District Partners
Renderings of what the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District could include. Rendering: Courtesy of Aloha Hālawa District Partners
The swap meet has moved, the farewell concert has taken place, and yet, we don’t know much about the future of the New Aloha Stadium Entertainment District. The old stadium should be dismantled by midyear, with the new one opening in March 2029. The 98 acres around the stadium, however, will be developed over the next two decades and beyond.
In August 2025, the Stadium Authority approved an agreement with developer Aloha Hālawa District Partners, whose master plan calls for thousands of housing units, hotel and office towers, and entertainment, retail, education and open spaces. It’s one of the largest public works projects ever undertaken by the Hawai‘i state government—and one need only look at other stadium districts around the country to see its potential to serve the community.
For example, in Georgia, The Battery Atlanta is anchored by Truist Park, home of the Atlanta Braves. Beyond the ballpark are shops, restaurants and housing along with a concert hall, virtual reality games, a movie theater, escape rooms, a coworking space and a distillery. Even for non-baseball fans, The Battery Atlanta is a destination.
In Titletown—the district around Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin—there’s a sports medicine clinic kitty-corner from the Packers’ home field. It’s even staffed by the team’s physician and offers free walk-in injury assessments, whether you’re an NFL player or not. And just like The Battery Atlanta, Titletown includes much more beyond sports—a hotel, brewery and public plaza, and events such as free meditation, game nights, and seasonal activities like skating and tubing.
What do we need to make NASED both a destination and something that serves our local community? The developers are off to a good start, with plans to include a cultural museum and a Hawai‘i Music Hall of Fame. It should also have coffee shops, small-business incubators and educational campuses, like The District Detroit, which is home to Wayne State University’s business school, the University of Michigan’s Center for Innovation and a technical high school.
Regardless of how those plans play out, the new stadium project needs to be worth the $400 million the state is investing in it. We’ll be watching.
alohastadium.hawaii.gov, @alohastadiumhi
Katrina Valcourt is the executive editor of HONOLULU Magazine.
