Newport Beach puts Balboa Island teak benches up for auction

Twenty-seven of Balboa Island‘s teak sidewalk benches, phased out and replaced beginning in 2020, are up for auction as of Wednesday.

The island previously had around 58 benches made of teak and 53 of jatoba wood, also known as Brazilian cherry, but the expected cost of their refurbishment was expensive — close to $700,000. City staff suggested a plan that would have brought the cost down to about $148,000, but the Newport Beach City Council voted down the possibility in January 2020 in favor of replacing the benches with new ones made of faux wood.

All 111 benches were donated by residents over a nearly 30-year period, according to a staff report from June 2022. Benches on the south side of the island were replaced in April 2023 and benches on the north side were replaced in October 2023.

This is the only auction of the teak benches. City spokesman John Pope said those up for auction are the only ones that remained unclaimed. All others were returned to their donors.

The teak benches were first approved by the Parks, Beaches and Recreation Commission in January 1996 at the behest of the Balboa Island Improvement Assn. on the condition that they be maintained by the group. The city took over their maintenance in 2006, when it had an in-house wood shop and refurbishing the benches cost $400. That work was outsourced in 2012, and market changes pushed the costs up to $960 for a jatoba bench and $1,150 for a teak bench at the time the council reconsidered and ultimately shut down the project in 2020.

The auction will last for one week. As of Wednesday afternoon, current bids place the benches between $275 to $550. Those interested can see all the links to the auctions at newportbeachca.gov/Home/Components/News/News/42809/2720.