I'm partially surprised that no one else has attempted something like this before.
GMLocutus and myself have taken on the mantle of making a Star Wars Mod for Star Fury.
I have zero graphic skills where GMLocutus has plenty. He is working on the visual aspects and I am looking into the data file modding.
This project is truely HUGE in it's scope. Currently we're looking at a galaxy map of 345 systems!!
The forum we are using for our discussions can be found here:
http://spaceempires.net/home/forum-48.html
Feel free to have a look and even put in suggestions. We may or may not take them but extra input may help us come up with things we would otherwise have missed.
Also keep in mind that reading some of the items on there may constitued spoiler info if you want to keep uninformed. That said, don't expect storyline-based info on the forum. Something's gotta stay secret.