NEWPORT BEACH : Club Hopes to Make Downtown Blossom

Dayna Petit wants downtown Balboa to look pretty.

To that end, she and 11 other women from the Balboa Peninsula have formed a flower-planting consortium called the Garden Club.

She hopes their efforts will also bring more business to the stores lining busy Balboa Boulevard.

The women have begun planting begonias, which they will hang on 12 lampposts dotting Balboa Boulevard from Main to Palm streets by the end of the month.

“I’ve had this idea for a couple of years but only now got the Garden Club together,” Petit said.

“We want to make our city look really pretty. We want to establish some real pride in our downtown area.”

Each week, club members plan to fill their water pitchers in the Balboa businesses, trot over to the street lamps, climb stepladders and water the pink begonias, said Petit, a community activist and 20-year resident.

The city still needs to give formal approval to the club’s plans, but Petit said that so far civic leaders seem to like the idea.

Businesses in the area also like it, she said.

“I think it’s absolutely marvelous,” said Phil Tozer, owner of the Balboa Pavilion. “Anything that makes the area more attractive is good for business.”

“We’re trying to beautify downtown Balboa because it needs pepping up and we want to show community support,” club member Jean Boyd said.

Her 24-year-old daughter, Elizabeth Boyd, added: “It is pretty messy down there. A lot of people litter, and the sidewalks are dirty. Maybe if it was attractive, we would have a better rate of (business) occupancy.”

Petit said the club is seeking additional volunteers interested in helping to plant and hang flowers throughout the central part of Newport Beach.