Facing fourth and long, the Hawaii Tourism Authority changed plays yesterday and voted to bring the Pro Bowl back to Aloha Stadium in 2011 and 2012.

One week after rebuffing the National Football League for the second time in two months, the HTA board voted 9-1 to pay the NFL $4 million per game to bring the annual all-star game back to Honolulu in 2011 and 2012. The games are scheduled for a week before the Super Bowl.

The two-year deal will cost an additional $145,000 for stadium game-day operations in 2011 and $152,250 in 2012, a 5 percent hike.

The agreement continues a long tradition of the Pro Bowl in Hawai'i and brings back an event that generates an average of $28 million a year in spending.

"We are pleased to continue our partnership with the state of Hawai'i, which has embraced the Pro Bowl for 30 years," Frank Supovitz, the NFL's senior vice president of events, said in a statement. "By placing the Pro Bowl in Hawai'i on a rotational basis, we will be able to make the game and its surrounding events even more accessible to our fans on the Mainland while maintaining our ties to the state. We will also work with the state to continue our charitable grants and player visit programs during the year the Pro Bowl is off island."

The Pro Bowl ended a three-decade run in Hawai'i this year. Next year, the game will be played at Dolphin Stadium in Miami a week before the Super Bowl.

On Feb. 26, the board lacked the necessary votes to accept the NFL's latest offer, but amid pressure from fans, state lawmakers and Mayor Mufi Hannemann, the board decided to accept the NFL's proposal after all. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had asked Hannemann to represent him and talk with HTA members to secure the votes necessary to bring the Pro Bowl back to Hawai'i.

Yesterday, HTA chairman Kelvin Bloom and several board members credited Hannemann for stepping in and negotiating to get those opposed to the proposal to change direction.

"I do still have some concerns with the contract. I did spend some time on the phone with Mayor Hannemann and he was very passionate about it," said HTA board member Stephen K. Yamashiro before the vote. "I have made some mistakes in the past. I guess I'll vote for it."

Bloom said he is glad the issue has been resolved and thanked Hannemann, who led state contract negotiations for the Pro Bowl under Govs. John Waihee and Ben Cayetano, for his role.

"We undoubtedly benefited from his (Hannemann's) help," Bloom said. "We've enjoyed 30 years of a great relationship (with the NFL) and hopefully we'll enjoy another 30 years going forward."

Hannemann said he is glad the board changed course and voted to bring the game back.

"I'm absolutely ecstatic that we were able to avoid a bad situation," Hannemann said. "I'm a big believer in sports tourism. I'm glad we did the right thing. I shudder to think of the implications if we voted it down."

The lone "no" vote came from board member Kiyoko Kimura, who represents Maui.

"I do understand the importance to the community, but after the last meeting I got a lot of support from the community for my no vote," Kimura said. "Four million could have been used for something else ... to market Maui more effectively."

Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona testified yesterday in favor of bringing the Pro Bowl back.

Aiona, who spoke with Goodell during the week, said the game is an integral part of the community.

"The Pro Bowl is a source of pride for our residents, whether they are sports fans or not, and a showcase spectacular of our beautiful state to the people of the world," Aiona said.

CONCERN ABOUT DATE

At last week's meeting, HTA board members expressed concern about the NFL's desire to play the game a week before the Super Bowl and said they wanted to evaluate the NFL's experiment in Miami.

If the NFL deems the scheduling change unsuccessful, the HTA will ask that the game be played in Hawai'i after the Super Bowl in 2011 and 2012.

Last week's vote was the second offer from the NFL that the HTA had rejected in two months.

In January, the board rejected an offer by the NFL to play the game in Honolulu in two of the next four years, starting in 2011. The board rejected that offer because the NFL would not say in which two years the game would be played in Hawai'i.

Visitors who came specifically to attend this year's Pro Bowl, played at Aloha Stadium Feb. 8, spent $28.6 million, compared with $28.07 million in 2008, according to a study conducted by Market Trends Pacific Research.

This year's game, won by the NFC 30-21, generated $2.9 million in state excise, hotel and car-rental taxes, compared with $2.5 million in 2008, according to the study.

There were 49,958 fans in the stands at Aloha Stadium for the Pro Bowl this year, compared with 49,621 in 2008.

Negotiations to hold the game in Hawai'i after 2012 are ongoing.

"We know how much the Pro Bowl means to the people of Hawai'i and to the thousands of fans from the Mainland who enjoy visiting our state for the game," said Lloyd Unebasami, interim president and CEO of HTA. "In addition to the economic benefits, HTA's continued partnership with the NFL provides ongoing contributions to our community including charitable donations, Pro Bowl youth training clinics statewide and school visitations."