Jones says UH still needs better stadium deal

Advertiser Staff

University of Hawai'i football coach June Jones said he still believes the school needs to secure a better deal from Aloha Stadium, but doubts the facility will be turned over to UH.

UH, the only school in the 10-team Western Athletic Conference that neither owns nor operates the stadium it plays in, paid $825,000 to hold its games at Aloha Stadium in 2002, according to figures provided by UH.

Jones, who has publicly championed the cause of UH operating the stadium since he became head football coach four years ago, said the inability to share in revenues there in advertising, concessions and parking "is frustrating, in that I think it hurts our school. The problem to me always has been that it was built for us (UH)."

He added: "I watched it being built. I played in it its first year — as an opponent (Portland State) — but the bureaucracy has, to me, totally changed Gov. (John) Burns' wishes."

Asked if he believes UH will get a break on rent or a share of parking, concessions or advertising, Jones said, "I have no idea, but I don't think we are gonna take it (over). We do need to take it over to get where we want to be."

Jones said he has discussed the issue with both then-Gov. Ben Cayetano and his successor, Linda Lingle.

"I think everybody, including Gov. Lingle, knows what the deal is and now it is somebody else's decision," Jones said. "It is a bureaucracy deal and the people at the legislature made a different decision from what I wanted. They voted against it."

At one time, Jones, who has been involved in on-and-off negotiations of a contract extension, included the school's operation of the stadium on his wish list. Asked if that was still a make-or-break element of the negotiations, Jones said, "I'm not going to say that it doesn't (have a bearing on whether he stays) right now. I think I'm going to sign a contract. I think it (stadium ownership) affects our abilities to go where we want to go. That's why it is bothersome to me."

Jones, who has 10 months remaining on his contract, said he will stop publicly campaigning for UH operation of the stadium.

"I haven't been told to lay off (the subject); that's my own decision," he said. "I'm just tired of it. It wasn't falling on deaf ears, a lot of people in the community have stepped up to help, but I'm at the point where I'd rather be worrying about what I'm going to do against USC than worrying about who controls beer sales."