For more than three decades, Sausalito’s colorful waterfront community of floating homes have drawn thousands of visitors in person to open house tours each summer.
Last year, like most in-person events, the annual Floating Homes Tour was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This summer, as health and safety uncertainty continues to affect the summer events schedule, the Floating Homes Association of Sausalito is moving to an online format for the 2021 Virtual Floating Homes Gala and Tour on Wednesday, June 9, at 6:30pm.
The virtual gala and tour, hosted by magician and comedian Jay Alexander, will give the public in Marin and beyond the opportunity to enjoy the color and diversity of Sausalito’s waterfront community from the comfort and safety of home.
Virtual attendees will also have the chance to participate in a live and silent auctions and be entertained by local bands during the evening. Proceeds from the gala will support the volunteer Floating Homes Association–which represents the owners and residents of the 400 Sausalito waterfront homes–as well as other local nonprofit groups like Performing Stars of Marin, the Friends of the Marin City Library, and the Bay Area Muscular Dystrophy Association
This year’s virtual gala will include looks inside historic waterfront landmarks, from Victorian arks to World War II-era surplus vessels. Among these landmarks is the Train Wreck, fashioned from an 1889 North Pacific Railway Pullman car; the Fairy Tale, a lifeboat built in 1943 for World War II and turned into a cozy home; and the Mirene, a still-navigable tugboat.
Attendees can also enjoy inside views of some of the dazzling houseboats and floating residences, learn the connections that these homes have to famous celebrities, and meet the owners of these eclectic vessels.
In addition to the view, the virtual event boasts entertainment from comic magician and floating home resident Jay Alexander–who serves as MC for the event–as well as local bands such as MYTHYX, The Hot Clams, Julie Courtney and Doug Nichols, and waterfront legends Joe Tate, Maggie Catfish and Slim.
State Senator Mike McGuire will act as auctioneer at the gala, and will conduct a spirited live auction of deluxe stay-and-play packages, such as a trip to the rainforest and beaches of Nicaragua. Along with the live virtual auction, a silent auction will feature arts and crafts by folks from the docks and other donated treasures.
Tickets to the 2021 Virtual Floating Homes Gala and Tour are on sale now, starting at $35. For more information about the tour, go to floatinghomes.org.
