Posted on: Wednesday, February 13, 2002

Maui Council panel backs Hula Bowl pact

By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau

WAILUKU, Maui — After kicking around a proposed contract extension for several weeks, a Maui County Council committee yesterday recommended approval of a pact that will keep the Hula Bowl Maui at War Memorial Stadium for five more years.

The council's Budget and Finance Committee voted 8-0 for an agreement through 2007 that earmarks a portion of every ticket from the college all-star football game to the county.

The deal, expected to gain approval from the full council, ends the uncertainty created last month after Hula Bowl officials said they were approached about moving the game back to O'ahu or to the Mainland.

Lenny Klompus, the game's chief executive officer, said he's looking forward to five more years on Maui.

"We're very excited it's done,'' he said. "It's time to move forward."

Under the deal, the county would receive $1 per ticket sold in the first year, gradually increasing to $5 a ticket sold. If a sellout is a crowd of 20,000, the county would gain $20,000 the first year, $100,000 in the fifth year.

When the game moved from O'ahu to Maui five years ago, the county's only Hula Bowl revenue came from an agreement with the Maui hotel industry to collect 10 percent of game-related room revenue. But predictions of big money never materialized, in part because such bookings were difficult to track, visitor officials said.

The new pact includes a provision that calls for a yearly financial review of the event three months after the game and requires that negotiations for additional contract renewals be started long before the expiration date.

Several council members said they were exasperated with the administration of Mayor James "Kimo'' Apana for bringing them the latest contract less than two months before kickoff. The council ended up giving separate approval for the 2002 game, which was held Feb. 2.

Apana explained that he wanted to secure a long-term arrangement and would have taken a proposal to the council earlier, but it lost some priority in the aftermath of the events of Sept. 11 and the dengue fever outbreak.

Yesterday, several council members said that while they questioned some of the provisions of the proposed contract, they remained supporters of the nationally televised Hula Bowl. Michael Molina was among the members who said the terms of the contract were fair, especially in light of its worth to Maui's visitor industry.