Scott Chan remains dedicated to management role at Aloha Stadium

Scott Chan can still recall the September day when he first set foot in Aloha Stadium, staring up in wonder at the new, shiny seats in a facility that, looking up from field level, seemed to stretch to the Halawa sky.

It was 1975, the first year of the stadium, and his senior season at quarterback for Kaiser High, for which he would play several memorable games there.

But never, he says, did he imagine that the place would come to occupy such a big portion of his life. “Not in my wildest dreams,” Chan said, shaking his head.

When the nine-member, appointed Aloha Stadium Authority gave him an “above expectations” biennial performance evaluation as stadium manager on Thursday, it put him on track for a quarter-century in the rusting, soon-to-be-44-year-old facility.

Between stints as assistant events manager, deputy stadium manager, interim stadium and, finally, stadium manager, Chan, 59, has become almost as much a fixture there as, well, the swap meet.

In that time, like the aging stadium itself, the job requirements of the position of stadium manager have evolved to the point that some of his predecessors might not recognize them.

“Technically he is a ‘facility manager,’ but the position has become much more than that over the years,” said Stadium Authority chairman Ross Yamasaki. “He’s doing things that his predecessors didn’t have to. The (authority) recognizes that and appreciates what he has done.”

Yamasaki didn’t say if Chan and stadium employees handing out cookies to fans waiting in line for Bruno Mars tickets was among the official duties.

Almost since Chan set foot in the manager’s office in 2007, until successful completion last year, he has waged the campaign to get federal and city deed restrictions on the property lifted so the state would have the option of ancillary development in replacing or renovating the stadium. No small feat when you have to get federal, city and state bureaucracies and their changing administrations on the same page.

In the 1960s, when the city first contemplated building a stadium in Halawa, much of the land was owned by the federal government, which agreed to part with it as long as it was restricted to recreational uses. Likewise when the city allowed the state to proceed with the stadium.

There are also frequent trips to the Capitol to beseech the legislature for money to fund basic health and safety repairs to keep the facility functional until a decision is made on its future. And, prioritizing necessities when the funds aren’t forthcoming, as has been the case the past two budgets.

Chan has also worked with the University of Hawaii to find ways to use incentives for breaks on expenses even though the stadium is charged with generating its own operational funds from receipts.

Chan took the heat over the traffic snarl that surrounded the NFL’s last Pro Bowl (2016) here and dealt with upset Mars ticket hopefuls last month.

“It was recognized by the (authority) that there are many times when everything goes right, when thousands of people are moved in and out without problems that don’t get talked about,” Yamasaki said. “We feel he’s doing an excellent job.”

So much so, Yamasaki said, “Since I’m on (the authority) for a few more years, I told him we’d like to keep him here a little longer — so he cannot (retire) for at least four more years.”

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