An agreement that would allow commercial activity to continue at a North Shore airfield is finally in negotiations after the Army agreed to authorize a 50-year lease.

The U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii and the state Department of Transportation on Tuesday announced “important progress” in the long-standing talks over a new long-term lease at Kawaihapai Airfield, formerly known as Dillingham Airfield, to ensure it “remains open for commercial activities,” according to a news release from the state.

The current short-term lease between the Army and the state expires July 5.

In 1991 an act of Congress called on the secretary of the Army to transfer to the state 87 acres of land that makes up the western end of Dillingham Airfield, a section of property that also includes the adjacent shoreline, known as Army Beach.

But the conveyance, for whatever reasons, did not take place. The entire Dillingham Military Reservation spans some 287 acres.

In March 2022 state lawmakers wrote in a resolution that the topography and weather offer ideal conditions found nowhere else in the state for recreational skydiving, glider planes, flight instruction and other aviation businesses that generate more than $12 million in revenue for the economy.

“Like so many other projects and initiatives we have here in Hawaii, this decision with the State of Hawaii DOT truly gives us the latitude to work closely with the community and airport officials on the way-ahead for Dillingham, and this is certainly a positive step,” said Col. Steve McGunegle, commander, U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii, in a statement.

In July the state told the U.S. Department of Defense that it would not continue leasing the land unless the Army agreed “to authorize a 50-year lease term.”

The state also wanted “sufficient rights and powers to operate the airfield” and needed to clarify who is responsible for the “oversight and management” of the existing water system.

“These issues that have been ongoing for the past 10 years have cost the state over $1 million per year and have prohibited HDOT from receiving federal grants for Kawaihapai Airfield,” read the news release from the state.

The Department of the Army Headquarters in Washington, D.C., informed U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii in December that it could proceed with negotiating a 50-year-lease.

Local commanders are permitted to “approve routine five-year leases,” and the Army needed approval from the Pentagon to proceed.

“Gaining approval on a 50-year lease term is a big advancement in our ongoing negotiation for a new lease,” said HDOT Director Ed Sniffen in a statement. “A long-term lease will allow HDOT to develop a master plan for Kawaihapai Airfield, apply for and receive Federal Aviation Administration Airport Improvement Program grants for long-term improvements and maintenance, and offer tenants longer-term leases that provide sufficient time for private investment and enhancement to their business operations.”

The oversight of the airfield’s water system is an immediate concern as “recent water line leak repairs were performed and paid for by HDOT,” with support by the Army.

“The tenants and community are overjoyed to hear of this great step forward for the airfield,” said Ben Devine, executive director, Save Dillingham Airfield. “We would like to commend the collaborative efforts of Director Ed Snif­fen and Col. McGunegle with the support of Rep. Perruso, Sen. Awa and especially U.S. Representative Jill Tokuda,” Devine said in a statement. “Everyone wants to see the airport succeed and it is amazing what we can accomplish with a united purpose. I know that with continued focus we can ensure the airfield remains a community asset not just for 50 more years, but centuries.”

The Army conducts “occasional exercises and training scenarios” where the use of the airfield is required for ground training and aviation purposes including helicopters, Unmanned Aerial Systems and cargo planes.

An annual exercise called Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center is also held, with the airfield and the other 200 acres of Dil­lingham Military Reservation serving a “key role for logistics, staging, and movement of troops and supplies.”

The Dillingham Military Reservation and Kawaihapai Airfield began in the early 1900s as a “small coastal defense camp and communication station known as Camp Kawihapai,” according to the state.

The airfield was used for training during and after World War II.

At the end of 1947, Mokuleia Army Airfield was transferred to the U.S. Air Force and renamed Dillingham Air Force Base in memory of Capt. Henry Gaylord Dillingham, a B-29 pilot who was killed in action over Kawasaki, Japan, on July 25, 1945.

In 1974 the Air Force transferred the base to the Army. The Army renamed it the Dillingham Military Reservation.

The state acquired a longer-term lease from the Army in 1974 and signed a 25-year lease in 1983. State lawmakers in 2001 passed a law officially renaming the airfield the Kawihapai Airfield to “recognize the traditional name of the area.”