The real estate investment trust that operates the Queen Mary in Long Beach and owns 26 other hotels filed for bankruptcy protection this week, signaling what could be the start of a wave of bankruptcies in the hospitality industry.
The 85-year-old former ocean liner-turned-floating hotel has been suffering, like the rest of the nation’s hotel industry, from a dramatic drop in demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Eagle Hospitality Trust’s Chapter 11 filing represents the latest setback for the iconic vessel that Long Beach had hoped would be the crown jewel in an eventually thriving leisure district.
The city of Long Beach, which owns the ship, issued a statement saying it will try to determine what Eagle Hospitality’s immediate plans are for the Queen Mary. The tourist attraction has been closed since May because of the pandemic.
Eagle Hospitality Trust was created in 2019 by Urban Commons, the real estate investment and development firm that owns a 66-year lease to operate the Queen Mary and develop the 65 acres around it. The lease extends until 2082. The trust was listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange with the goal of raising money to finance hospitality-related ventures primarily in the U.S., including a $250-million commercial development around the ship called Queen Mary Island.
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