Proposal:
I would like to propose that I create two new themes for the community.
I have the skills to get this job done right and will take great pride in doing so!
It would be an honor for me to have this iconic website listed in my portfolio of work.
By using an empty install of the same forum version, I can create a mobile and updated standard theme for the forum
that can be placed without editing any of the forum source code and without any downtime or compatibility issues.
(This is assuming the forum software has the option to offer user selection of different themes)
The community could then select between the classic, new standard, or new mobile themes.
The idea is good. But, as I remember how the SMF version used works, the forum template is directly integrated with many of its features. That's why the option to change themes was disabled, as using another theme would remove functions or break the changes made.
To do this, you would need to have access to the source code of the entire forum, something that the administration does not want to share for security reasons. The current theme, although visually similar to the original SMF, is very different in terms of code from the original.
I could be wrong, but this is what I remember from when I used SMF on the forums I had. In fact, it was because the forum design was interconnected with the source code that most forums at the time did not allow changing the theme. Unless they didn't make any code changes.
But, I could be wrong. @PowerGlove might be able to check this out, as he's been messing with SMF more recently.