87-year-old building on Balboa Island now just a memory
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It is a common occurrence to see residential lots scraped on Balboa Island to make room for supersized dwellings destined to replace original cottages, but the structures in the two-block Marine Avenue business district have been left relatively untouched over the decades.
That changed Wednesday morning at 7 a.m., when a bulldozer arrived to begin demolishing 224 Marine Ave. to make room for Arc Balboa Island Restaurant, a project given the green light by the Planning Commission earlier this year.
Newport Beach Mayor Noah Blom and his wife, Marin, had originally hoped to preserve the existing cottage for their restaurant. The dilapidated condition of the aging structure, however, made renovations impossible, according to city project planner Ben Zdeba, who said he was unaware of any previous complete demolitions on the avenue.
Balboa Island resident Garrett Calacci, who currently owns the 224 Marine property, said he’d had his eye on the quaint retail building, which was across the street from his office, for some time.
“I had gotten to know the building owner, Gene Giannulli, over the last several years, and in 2019 I asked him if he was interested in selling,” said Calacci. “I wanted to buy the building to use as my office, and we ended up making a deal over lunch. Sadly, Giannulli unexpectedly died soon after before the deal could be finalized, but the family upheld the prior arrangements.”
Calacci considered a mixed-use plan for the building. It was to have two side-by-side storefronts, one for his office and the other a retail establishment, all topped with a loft-type condo on top, where Calacci hoped to live.
That all changed during the pandemic in March 2020, when he set out on a challenge to find a place to eat.
“I wanted to buy something from a small business, so I biked from Balboa Island across the ferry,” said Calacci. “I saw lights on at Arc Butcher & Baker on 30th street in Cannery Village and got takeout.”
He soon became a frequent customer, often eating there daily and getting acquainted with the restaurant’s owners, the Bloms.
“My mixed-use building development plan had been in the works until I went to Arc,” said Calacci. “The food and overall experience was so unique and special I thought it would be important for the street and the island.”
“It’s been a labor of love. It means a lot to me,” Calacci said about the last three years of planning the project. “As a custom home builder, I’ve torn down an estimated 100 houses, and this project is the most special one.”
He and the Bloms are confident that even though they are building a totally new building it will be in keeping with the island’s charm.
“Since putting up the construction fence with “ARC Balboa Island — coming soon” we have received so many emails and texts with overwhelming excitement about the restaurant and what is to come for the island,” Marin Blom said. “We are energized by such amazing feedback and are confident the community is behind us!”
She added they are looking forward to building and opening a restaurant that is unique to the neighborhood and tailored to the needs of the community.
“Balboa Island is such a special place,” she said. “We hope to maintain the quaint nature of the island and breathe new life into Marine Avenue.
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