Posted on: Saturday, February 12, 2005

UH ticket plan debated

By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer

The University of Hawai'i's proposed "high-roller" section at Aloha Stadium could generate millions of dollars for the athletic department, if passed.

But at what cost?

Several longtime season ticket holders who would be displaced by the proposal voiced their concerns at a public hearing yesterday at the Wong Hospitality Suite in the Stan Sheriff Center.

"I missed four games in 32 years, and now I'm being priced out," said David Ellis, a season-ticket holder in the loge section of Aloha Stadium. "I can tell you of 26 people in my section, we're going to be at each other's houses watching on TV because we can't afford it anymore."

According to the proposal, UH wants to turn the sideline seats in the loge section (brown seats) into a "high-roller" section starting with the upcoming football season. Packages to sit in that section would range from $3,500 to $20,000.

Season-ticket holders in that section will be given the first option to retain their seats at the inflated prices. If they decline, they will be given a chance to purchase any of the "best available" seats not already owned by other season-ticket holders.

"We were willing to pay the increases each year," Ellis said. "But not $3,500. The seats in my house will be a whole lot cheaper."

Ellis is one of about 600 season-ticket holders in the loge section who would be affected if the proposal passes.

Keith Ishikawa sits in Ellis' section, and said he will likely surrender his season tickets as well.

"No seat will be as good as the seats we have now," he said. "The luster in the Rainbows, the Warriors, to me has been tarnished because of what's being done to me and my fellow people in that section."

'Ahahui Koa Anuenue, the booster group for the UH athletic department, presented the proposal yesterday.

Vince Baldemore, executive director of Koa Anuenue, said the new loge prices could generate "an additional $1 million in revenue."

Koa Anuenue also presented its proposals yesterday for increased premium fees for "preferred seats" at several sporting events.

At UH football games, the premium fees will increase between $5 and $75 per seat in 2005, with the increase depending on the location of each seat. The proposal is also seeking incremental increases each year through 2008.

Hawai'i athletic director Herman Frazier said the premium fees were installed in 2002 and has generated around $3.3 million for the athletic department since then.

Premium fees are also charged on "preferred seats" at men's basketball, women's volleyball, men's volleyball and baseball.

"One of the things we have not done here at the University of Hawai'i is talk about dropping sports," Frazier said. "Because those are some of the alternatives when you start trying to find ways to cut costs."

Frazier added that the revenue generated by the premium fees is "going towards athletes and athlete services. It is not going towards salaries or any of those things."

Several fans testified in favor of the premium increases yesterday knowing that it was being generated for scholarships for the student-athletes.

What's more, the premium fees can be counted toward the annual membership fee for Koa Anuenue members. The booster group claims the more membership fees it receives, the better the benefits it can offer.

Koa Anuenue president Bert Kobayashi said the proposal came after two years of discussion and research. He said some of the UH proposals were modeled after similar plans at Fresno State, which is annually among the national leaders in booster donations.

Frazier added that the increased revenue could eventually increase the UH athletic department's annual budget by as much as $6 million.

The UH athletic department has faced million-dollar-plus deficits for three consecutive years, and is facing rising costs in several areas.

However, some of the season-ticket holders in the loge section were not pleased that the announcement of the proposal was made in The Honolulu Advertiser.

"Not a letter in the mail, nothing," Ellis said. "It's turning a lot of people away. The loges are going to be empty. You're going to put people out of the stadium and not put people in the stadium."

However, Frazier said he has already received inquiries from corporate sponsors interested in the "high-roller" football seats.

A similar plan is in place this season with courtside seating at UH men's basketball games in the Stan Sheriff Center. However, those seats did not displace any season-ticket holders.

"You're not always going to satisfy everyone in this type of situation," Frazier said. "But there were some things that were brought up today that the board will take under consideration to lessen the burden on some of these people."

The proposal will be presented to the UH Board of Regents next week. If approved by the Board, season-ticket holders will have until June 30 to pay the increased premium fees.

If the premium fees are not paid, those tickets will become part of the "best available" choices for displaced ticket holders.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8101.

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