Wander into Newport Beach’s Civic Center Park and you might just feel like you’ve stepped into wonderland. Up the flower-lined path, you’ll be greeted by an 8-foot-tall white rabbit, similar to the one in “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” minus the pocket watch. Continue up the path, past the enormous butterfly wings and over the foot bridge, and you’ll land at another curiosity. A circle of 14 4-foot-tall rabbit sculptures, with varying colors of pastel eyes, all stand in a circle, eyeing each other in the shade of a nearby tree.
The public art, commonly referred to as Bunnyhenge, has been a fixture of the Newport Beach art park for more than a decade. While some residents, especially kids, love Bunnyhenge, the bunnies have also sparked criticism. But the fate of the rabbits is unclear.
The city is now eyeing that land for development of a new police headquarters. Many residents are concerned about losing the bunnies, and the art park as a whole. But for city officials, the need far outweighs those concerns…