Balboa Island home tour takes a walk on the ‘beautiful’ side
Taking a peek inside a home that’s not yours typically might result in an unintended trip in the back of a police car. But on Sunday, visitors from near and far can legally look inside 12 homes on Balboa Island in Newport Beach.
The Balboa Island Improvement Assn. will present its annual Balboa Island Holiday Home Walking Tour from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., giving residents the opportunity not only to check out their neighbors’ floor plans but also how they decorate their homes.
The tour began 19 years ago as a way for the association to raise funds for other community events, such as the annual pancake breakfast and Fourth of July parade on Balboa Island, according to Gail Vasterling, who handles publicity for the tour.
This year’s event features 12 dwellings ranging from cozy cottages built in the early 1900s to homes built a few years ago. The tour will even stop in a room at the Balboa Island Hotel, Vasterling said.
“It’s a fun outing for people,” Vasterling said, noting that people from throughout Orange and Los Angeles counties attend each year. “Every home is so unique that you always see something different.”
The one detail the homes have in common, Vasterling said, is that “they are all beautiful.”
Balboa Island is home to dueling banana stands, quaint shops along Marine Avenue and a rich history of families, many of whom first traveled to the area to stay in summer homes. Eventually, many of those families turned their summer homes into year-round residences.
Sue Recker and her family were drawn to the island because of its close proximity to the beach.
Recker, her husband, Ken, and their three daughters lived in Newport Coast for 13 years and often traveled to Balboa Island to go to the beach.
“We got to thinking and realized we love it down here — why don’t we think about buying a home here,” she said.
They decided in 2014 to buy a recently rebuilt 2,800-square-foot home on Onyx Avenue. Recker’s home is one of the 12 featured on the tour Sunday.
The two-story home has front and back outdoor decks, four bedrooms, four bathrooms and a small office off the kitchen. Recker says her decorating style pays tribute to the coastal area, with a palate of blue accents.
“My kids wouldn’t change anything,” she said. “This is their dream life.”
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If You Go
What: Balboa Island Holiday Home Walking Tour
When: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday
Where: 12 stops on the main island
Admission: $25 (includes a tour map)
Tickets and information: (949) 675-1773
