Pro Bowl returning to Hawaii after tourism board changes decision

The board also had expressed concern about spending millions amid the economic downturn.

But five board members switched their "no" votes from last week, when the board voted 6-4 against the proposal.

"I have made some mistakes in the past and maybe this is one of them," said board member Stephen Yamashiro.

Yamashiro said he was lobbied "passionately" in the past week by Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, who also contacted other board members.

Board member Sharon Weiner was one of the most vocal opponents last week, but also reversed her vote.

In an interview, Weiner said she realized the benefits to the community after talking with officials in the hotel and airline industry, as well as Hannemann. But she's still concerned about devoting so much money from a budget that has been cut from to $71 million from $88 million in the past year.

"We don't know what our budget is going to be in 2011, so we're committing to a budget that we don't know what will be. So there's real risks here for us," Weiner said. "We needed to consider, reconsider and make sure we've handled all of the considerations before we made this very important decision."

Kyoko Kimura, a hotel executive from Maui, cast the only vote against the Pro Bowl proposal.

Kimura didn't raise any objections during the brief discussion before the vote. After the meeting, she said the Pro Bowl's economic and community benefits is not felt on the island outside Oahu.

Last month's Pro Bowl generated $28.6 million in spending and $2.9 million in taxes. It also helped market the state, which is heavily dependent on tourism.