While the demand for University of Hawaii football tickets has been dropping in recent seasons, the market for so-called VIP seating has apparently been rising.

So much so that Aloha Stadium said it plans to construct and rent out two club boxes in section “E” of the south end zone loge level in time for the 2016 home opener Sept. 10.

That will add 51 cushioned seats to the 79 sky box seats and 48 field-level seats the stadium has been selling as its VIP inventory.

“Now that we have the sky boxes, there has been an enormous amount of interest from people wanting to purchase these private, secluded boxes, so we feel there is potential there and we want to try and take advantage of that,” stadium manager Scott Chan said.

That comes in contrast to overall attendance, which has declined each of the past three years, plummeting from an average of 26,637 per game in 2013 to 16,082 in 2015.

A 2005 state-commissioned study recommended adding luxury boxes as part of a facility-wide upgrade. But limited state funds, most of it going for essential health and safety and maintenance work, had kept plans on the back burner.

As a result UH was a rarity among its then-Western Athletic Conference peers, a school without some form of VIP seating for its patrons.

So, in 2011, with the facility locked into football configuration, the stadium offered UH makeshift field-level boxes in the south end zone baseball dugout areas. This season 48 seats spread across mauka and makai areas, complete with catering, bar service, an enclosed air-conditioned booth, flat-screen TVs, private restroom and parking will be offered at $125 each.

In 2013 the stadium began renovating the former baseball press box in the south end zone into five sky boxes that now seat 79 and include catering, a lounge area, hosted bar and parking for $250. Patrons also are offered an escorted visit to the field.

Stadium sales and marketing specialist Samantha Spain told the Aloha Stadium Authority earlier this month two sky boxes were nearly sold out, helping push the expansion.

Spain told the panel “with that positive response (we’re) looking at creating two separate club boxes…This addition will create additional revenue as well as satisfy the need expressed by many of the fans over the years.”

The club boxes will be the most expensive venture yet and in-house construction is projected to cost $70,000-$100,000, with funds coming from stadium improvement allocations. At $200 a head for the club boxes, officials said they expect to recoup money “within two and a half seasons.”

Once the stadium recovers its investment, officials said, UH will share in future proceeds.

Chan said 12-15 season ticket holders are being displaced by the conversion of the lightly-occupied section “E” loge location but have been offered relocation to comparable seats.

Thus becoming one of the biggest tests of VIP seating as a rare growth area of UH football ticket sales.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820