AUCTION OFFERS SHOT AT LEGOLAND LEGACY
Winning bidder will have likeness replicated with Legos, housed in exhibit
Visiting a popular theme park for the day can be a fun indulgence, but what about living in one — forever?
Legoland California, in a novel fundraising effort for disadvantaged and ill children, is offering anyone the chance — via an auction — to have his or her 4-inch-tall likeness replicated with Lego bricks and then immortalized in a home with a view inside Miniland U.S.A.
And did we mention that this would not be any old tract home, but rather a four-bedroom beachfront abode with a designer kitchen, Jacuzzi and firepit — and designed by a celeb Realtor?
The winner of an auction, launched this week, will get to have up to 10 family members and a pet or two pose for Lego Master Model Builders, who will transform them into Minilanders before moving them into their dream home in Coronado — that is, the re-creation of Coronado within Miniland San Diego. The new attraction, featuring iconic San Diego landmarks, debuted just a few months ago.
“It’s the only way most San Diegans can afford a beach home,” joked Julie Estrada, director of public relations, North America, for Merlin Entertainments, owner of Legoland. “And it’s a way to never age, you’ll never need plastic surgery. You’re taken care of every day, our model builders go through Legoland every day, so you have house cleaners, there’s even a playroom inside, and you can see San Francisco and Las Vegas (Minilands) from your home.”
The idea for the charitable fundraiser originated from a somewhat similar initiative undertaken years ago at Legoland’s Windsor resort in the United Kingdom. In that instance, the Legoland park had a contest where people could submit photos of their homes in hopes of being chosen to have their house built out of Lego bricks and put on display within the park. That competition, though, was not designed to raise money for a charitable cause.
“We thought that was a really cool idea, and with San Diego Miniland, we’ve had so much good feedback that we thought, wouldn’t it be amazing to have a house built specifically for you where you can see all of San Diego in no more than 15 minutes,” Estrada said. “You can see Petco Park, the convention center, Old Town, the beaches, all the different landmarks, from this home.”
To pull off this designer home feat, Legoland collaborated with celebrity real estate agent Allie Lutz of the Netflix program “Buying Beverly Hills,” who worked with the master model builders to create the Craftsman-style home. It took 380 hours and 50,000 Lego bricks to pull off the mini-construction project.
In addition to its four bedrooms and 4 1⁄2 bathrooms, the Coronado beach home has an outdoor area that would be the dream of any coastal dweller — a “brick-scaped” front yard and porch with a bird feeder and fountain, veranda-covered backyard deck gussied up with a flower overhang and dining table, and a shower, hot tub and grill for evening relaxation.
And it’s within walking distance of human-scale attractions like the Dragon coaster.
The auction, which doesn’t close until Aug. 7, hasn’t yet attracted many bids — just eight as of this writing — but is likely to get busier as the deadline approaches. The highest bid so far late Wednesday afternoon was $525.
Merlin’s Magic Wand Foundation, which will be getting the proceeds, is described as a nonprofit organization that partners with Merlin Entertainments to “deliver magical experiences to children who need them most.”
The foundation, Estrada said, supports children from ages 2 to 18, who may be seriously ill, have disabilities, are in foster care, or are under guardianship. In some cases, the beneficiaries of the foundation get to take advantage of “magical days off,” where they get free tickets to attractions like Legoland, Madame Tussauds or the Sea Life Aquariums. In other cases, the nonprofit will come to the children or remake spaces with a Lego-themed experience in hospitals or treatment centers where the kids need to spend a lot of time.
Once the current auction ends, work will begin to re-create the winning bidder and his or her family. Estrada said it’s the park’s hope to have the occupants of the new home, which is already completed, ready by Sept. 16, when Legoland’s popular Halloween celebration — Brick-or-Treat — begins.
“The winner’s home will be redecorated during the holidays, where we will put up Christmas lights and decorate for Halloween,” Estrada said. “It should be playful, because that’s what we are all about.”