Note the sign above the window of the MQF
Posted on 01/25/2008 7:24:36 AM PST by SmithL
When veterans and history buffs were rallying more than a decade ago to save the USS Hornet and transform it into a floating museum, they displayed a flag above the aircraft carrier's flight deck.
"Don't give up the ship," it said.
The fight is still going on.
Only this time Hornet supporters are trying to increase the number of museum-goers and steer the struggling ship into a strong financial current.
It's not easy, admits Jon Stanley, the museum's chief executive officer.
"If we were docked at a pier in San Francisco, there would be plenty of foot traffic and people interested in coming aboard," Stanley said as he sat in his office deep in the heart of the ship. "But just look outside here now. I bet there's no one."
A struggle for cash
This was not what supporters of the ship expected to happen when they campaigned to save the vintage vessel.
Instead, they envisioned a fully redeveloped Navy base with the flattop as the neighborhood's economic powerhouse, pumping up to $15 million annually into the city's coffers.
"Why is the Hornet good for the community?" asked Jerry Lutz, then-CEO of the Hornet foundation, during a press conference in March 1996. "The Hornet will bring in 500,000 visitors during the early years of operation and as high as 1 million after three to five years of operation. She will start with 50 direct employees and a budget of $5 million to $10 million."
His claims turned out to be wildly optimistic.
Not only has the redevelopment of the former Navy base moved at a snail's pace, but the Hornet was broadsided in ways that no one expected -- much like what its crew must have felt when they first experienced Japanese kamikaze attacks during World War II.
Along with the unending competition for grants and donations, the dot.com bust and the downturn in regional tourism after the 9/11 attacks each left the Hornet trying to stay afloat.
The museum, however, has struggled from the start.
The provisions of its initial lease with the city, executed in April 1998, called for the museum to pay a base rent of $27,000 each month for the use of the pier and parking lot. The lease also called for the rent to increase as more people began visiting the museum.
But during that first year -- as volunteers were readying the museum for its grand opening -- no rent was paid.
As a result, the city reduced the fees in May 1999, dropping the daily rent for the pier from $800 to $250 per day and reducing the rent for the parking lot from $3,000 to $1,000 each month. The city also wrote off about $300,000 it was owed.
In August 2000 the city reduced the rent again, setting it at $8,500 per month for both the pier and lot, city documents show.
By October 2005 -- seven years after it opened amid speeches and a Navy jet fly-over -- the museum owed the city $529,170 in back rent, according to a memorandum that went to the Economic Development Commission.
Today, the debt remains about the same.
It currently stands about $554,000, said Nanette Banks, a finance and administration manager for Alameda's development services department.
Stanley, who has been at the Hornet's helm since August 2006, declined to comment on the figures, noting that he's now negotiating with the city to work out a long-term lease.
"It's not an insignificant amount, though, that's for sure," he said.
Heart of the Hornet
Kevin Holton stood inside the Hornet's cavernous hangar bay -- where sailors once readied aircraft with bombs and bullets before sending them topside -- and felt humbled.
The 54-year-old Holton, a financial consultant who lives outside Chicago, was visiting the carrier with his co-worker, Jim Nethery, on a recent afternoon as a break from a San Francisco business trip.
"The historic role of this ship is immense," Holton said. "It gives you a real feel for what it must have been like to serve in World War II. It's something you can't get from a book or TV. That's why we came over."
All around the two men were the success stories that the Hornet's supporters say are often overlooked.
Among them is a pristine Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo bomber and the other vintage aircraft that volunteers have lovingly restored and put on display
Nearby are displays showcasing the Hornet's role during the Apollo 11 and 12 Moon landings of 1969, when the carrier plucked the astronauts from the Pacific Ocean after they returned to Earth.
"This is stuff you cannot find anywhere else," Nethery said.
Of the museum's 20 full-time employees, half work to maintain the nearly 65-year-old flat-top, keeping the lights glowing and the aircraft carrier generally ship-shape.
There are also about 30 part-timers who help run the museum, including the gift shop and the program that allows scouts and others to spend the night aboard.
But the heart of the Hornet -- known affectionately as "The Old Gray Ghost" -- is the more than 150 men and women who volunteer as restoration workers and docents, offering tours to about 5,000 visitors each month.
For each visitor, the city receives $1 as part of the month-to-month agreement that the Hornet has worked out with the Alameda Reuse and Redevelopment Authority, Stanley said.
Anchored in Alameda
Despite wanting more visitors, there are no plans to shift the museum to a pier in San Francisco or any other city, Stanley said.
"People forget that moving is expensive," he said. "Even if we had another location available -- and we don't -- we would have to close down for several months to facilitate the move. It would also affect our volunteers and docents. Some might not follow us. There would be problems."
Currently, the museum is negotiating with Alameda officials for a new lease agreement.
While Stanley declined to go into specifics -- saying it would not be fair to city officials -- he did say that he would like to secure a five-year agreement.
Meanwhile, the Hornet's staff are organizing a bash in October to celebrate the museum's 10th anniversary. Fundraisers are also planned, including a March 22 appearance by the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, to generate cash.
"So many people hate their jobs," Stanley said. "But each morning I get up and want to go to work. I really do. How many people can say that?"
fyi
Move the ship to some place like Texas or South Carolina instead of the Left Coast and problem solved.
That boat must've been state of the art in WWII. It is almost impressive by today's standards!
I would donate to help pay for it, and so would others.
How about Battleship Cove here in MA?
That would be sweet!!
Hornet's problem is it's isolation. As far as anyone can tell, the only activity at the former Alameda Naval Air Station is the Hornet and Myth Busters TV show.
The USS Pampanito is at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco (Yeah, that San Francisco). It does a great business, primarily because of all the foot traffic. It is an exceptionally well-cared-for boat, and people love it.
As the article points out, the cost of moving Hornet is prohibitive. The real answer is development in the area.
Correct - you can pass the turnoffs to the old base in the blink of an eye, and there's no seeing the ship from the road, or anywhere else, until you enter the parking lot.
In 97 I attended a reunion of Battle of Midway vets - to a WWII buff it was fantastic. Dunno how the ship will fare as the WWII guys are almost all gone now.
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