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April 13, 2003
Former cruise ship docks at Mare Island
By Chris G. Denina Times-Herald staff writer
A cruise ship that once sailed to the Hawaiian islands has found a temporary new home in Vallejo.
Until Friday, the SS Independence had been docked at Benicia's Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet, nicknamed the Mothball fleet, where many old ships are tied up.
On Friday morning, the steamship was moved to Mare Island's Berth 10, and is now under the care of Petaluma-based Marine Survey and Management Co.
But Mare Island is just a temporary home, company owner Gary Whitney said.
"It's not going to be permanent," Whitney said. "The vessel is an operational vessel."
New owners - or owner - have bought the ship, Whitney said. They plan to say more about their intentions Monday, he said, adding, "The owner is anonymous right now."
A reserve fleet official couldn't immediately be reached for comment Friday.
For Dave Smith, 71, of Vallejo, seeing the ship docked at Mare Island dredged up old memories. He and his wife Dorothy, 73, took a 10-day cruise on the vessel on their Hawaii-an honeymoon after getting married May 16, 1999.
"That would be nice if they put it back into service and cruise around the Hawaiian islands there," Smith said. "It's not a luxurious cruise ship - but it was for us."
When it was docked at the reserve fleet, they took a boat ride to see the ship from the bay, Smith said.
"We said, 'Oh my gosh, there's our love boat,'" Smith said.
The ship features a Hawaiian theme, complete with flower patterns painted across two smokestacks, Smith said.
The ship was built in the 1950s and carries about 700 people, his wife said. That's small compared to today's cruise ships, some of which carry 2,000 or more, Dorothy Smith said.
"It was pretty exciting," she said. "We just hope it's not there to be scrapped but maybe somebody with a lot of money will refurbish it."
If the new owners plan to restore it as a cruise ship, sailing it on the open seas again, the Smiths wouldn't hesitate to buy a ticket, she said.
"We'd go tomorrow," she said, recalling their memories of their first passage on the ship. "It was our honeymoon cruise."
E-mail Chris G. Denina at cdenina@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6835.
Ship repair may return to M.I., temporarily
By Chris G. Denina, Times-Herald staff writer
Seven years after Mare Island Naval Shipyard closed, the former military base could soon be used as a major repair facility again -- if only for a year and only for one vessel.
The SS Independence, a former Hawaii cruise ship bought in March after a bankruptcy seizure, could undergo a multi-million overhaul at Mare Island, a ship management official said Monday. The ship was moved to Mare Island's Berth 10 from Suisun Bay on Friday.
The 1950s steamship joins other ships at Mare Island. Baylink ferries are repaired there. The former military transport White Holly is used as a training facility there. And the decommissioned USS Tripoli is moored there.
Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line Ltd., which bought the Independence for about $4 million, is considering adding the ship to its four-ship Hawaii fleet, cruise line and government officials said.
But first, Norwegian officials must decide how they want to fix up the 1,066-passenger ship, said Gary Whitney, owner of Marine Survey and Management Co. of Petaluma. He said he was hired in March to oversee the repairs.
"It depends on how extensive the owner wants as far as an overhaul, while at the same time upgrading the systems and that kind of thing," Whitney said. "It could take as long as three months, up to a year."
The work would take place at Mare Island, Whitney said. The project could cost millions, and would be a boon to the local economy, he said. But, he added, Norwegian officials haven't said what kinds of upgrades they want.
"Those things are being discussed," Whitney said. "We don't have any firm word as to what they need to do."
Colin Veitch, Norwegian president and chief executive, couldn't be reached for comment Monday.
The company plans to start an inter-island Hawaii cruise service and could use the Independence as the fifth ship in its new Hawaii fleet, according to a company press release.
An overhaul could boost the local economy, said Tom Sheaff, vice president and general manager of Lennar Mare Island LLC. The developer owns about 650 acres on the former military base, including maritime facilities.
"If they do that on Mare Island, it would mean that they would most likely lease at least one of the dry docks, which would put that facility back into operation," Sheaff said. "For the city and community, that would also create a significant number of jobs, although I'm not sure exactly what that is at this point," Sheaff said. "That would be everything from contractors to employees."
Under the current lease agreement, the Independence can stay at Mare Island for three to six months, Sheaff said.
"At some point during this process, we hope they would make the decision to stay here to do the long term work," Sheaff said.
"The maritime uses are still an integral part of the project," he added. "We hope to be able to continue to expand it and utilize the existing facilities that are out there."
Until Friday, the Independence had been moored at Benicia's Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet, which is under the U.S. Maritime Administration.
Norwegian bought the ship for about $4 million from the administration, said Ella Thomas, a congressional and public affairs specialist for the administration's Washington, D.C., office.
The agency acts as an underwriter for ship construction and operations loans, said Joe Pecoraro, fleet superintendent in Benicia. The Independence underwent a major upgrade in the late 1990s, he said.
The federal agency seized the ship after the former owner, American Hawaii Cruises and its parent company American Classic Voyages, went bankrupt in 2002, months after 9/11, Pecoraro said. The travel industry saw fewer passengers after the terrorist attacks.
The Independence came to the fleet April 11, 2002 -- exactly a year before it left Friday for Mare Island, Pecoraro said. Reserve fleet workers went through the Hawaiian-themed cruise ship and found Hawaiian artifacts including a canoe, Pecoraro said. Those items were put in the agency's Alameda warehouse, he said.
Countless other items, though, were left onboard, he said.
"The thing was loaded with everything you need for a cruise ship," Pecoraro said. "There were three pianos aboard, drums, a PA system, audio visual, dishes and plates, pots and pans, furnishings -- you name it -- it was stocked."
The ship was ready to return to duty as a cruise ship, unlike many other ships at the reserve fleet, he said. The administration maintains its fleet of ships in case they're needed in times of war, he said, noting two have been activated for Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The Independence has a second chance at life, Pecoraro said.
"I'm glad to see that it's out and possibly operating," Pecoraro said. "Usually when a ship leaves here, it's going out to scrapping."
E-mail Chris G. Denina at cdenina@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6835.
