I understand that Bill has shared his AV website with former operators of the ship. As far as I know the response has been positive, but the potential cost and the size of the commitment needed has prevented any progress.
The current method of operation of the ship - using the main public rooms as conference and banquet halls with stacking chairs - goes back to the Diners Club days in the early 1970's. It was implemented as a quick, simple, easy and cheap method of using the main public rooms without any significant investment. It is NOT what was originally planned for the ship in the LB conversion. Each operator since then has followed exactly the same approach - maximise returns with minimum investment in changes. As a leasehold site, the operators have no incentive at all to make major capital investment in the ship. So long as the leasehold approach continues, I suspect there will be no major change to QM.
It is unfortunate that the level of curatorial diligence shown at many historic sites is not displayed on board QM. She needs a historical team with responsibility for cataloguing her furniture and fittings, storing them in an appropriate manner, and ensuring that changes made are done so in a sensitive and respectful manner.
To be honest, I think part of the problem is that the ship is misplaced and would fair better in a city with a large population (New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, London), or a city with historical connections (Southampton or Liverpool). The ship does earn something of a profit in LB, however it isn't nearly enough to do everything good for the Queen Mary. LB is certainly close to L.A. but is often bypassed and overlooked. The navy has been gone from there for years. It isn't famous for its beaches (ironic considering the name). Honestly, the Queen Mary is one of the only reasons tourists visit LB. I do think that the current operators do care for the ship, even if they are slightly misguided. I know they are doing surveys on the hull (40 years in a basin haven't been good to the bottom) and planning on replacing and repairing the side shell and the hull. As for the bottom, they will probably just have to encase it in concrete and carry out repairs from within. The nearest dry dock is in San Diego and it's feared chunks of the bottom will fall out so any repairs will need to be there. Sometimes I worry if the ship will be scrapped, but I think the ship's future is secure and it is popular. I pray for her, and at least the management is starting to step in the right direction.
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