Parks friends group auction item ideas that sell

For the general list, see our 100+ silent auction item ideas. A friends group's catalogue is mostly local, and its distinctive items are sponsorship and the park itself.

Sponsorship

• A bench, a tree, a trail section, a garden bed
• A picnic table, a bike rack, a water fountain
• A season of the flower beds
• Playground equipment, or an element of it
• An accessibility improvement
• A sponsored volunteer work day

Terms to agree first: trail and feature sponsorship.

The park itself, with permission

• Exclusive use of a shelter, pavilion or field for an event
• A private guided walk with the park naturalist, ranger or a local expert
• A dawn or evening visit where the park closes at dusk
• A behind-the-scenes tour — the depot, the nursery, the maintenance yard, which people find surprisingly interesting
• A day with the grounds crew for somebody's teenager
• Naming a volunteer day, or leading one

Everything here needs the agency's agreement and most of it costs staff time they may not have. Ask for a small number and deliver all of them.

For people who use the park

• A picnic set, a hammock, outdoor games, a portable chair
• Dog goods and services — walking, grooming, training. Dog walkers are frequently the park's most frequent users
• Running, cycling and outdoor gear from local shops
• Binoculars, field guides and a beginner's birding kit
• Photography of the park by a local photographer, framed
• Local artists' work depicting the park, which sells well in a neighbourhood

From the businesses around it

Restaurants and cafes facing the park, shops on the square, services from neighbours. This is most of the catalogue and it comes from businesses with a direct interest in the park being pleasant.

What to check

• Anything on public land against the agency's policy, in writing
• Exclusive use items against the agency's own booking system and fees — you may be selling something it already rents
• Staff time against whether those staff are actually available
• Naming and memorial items against duration and replacement policy
• Alcohol at a park event, which usually needs a permit
• Anything implying the group can influence agency decisions — bookings, permits, enforcement or bookings priority

The exclusive use point catches groups out. Many agencies already rent shelters and fields on a published schedule, and a friends group auctioning one may be undercutting the park's own income — which is the opposite of helping.

General information, not legal advice for your group. Gift acceptance, procurement, naming and volunteer rules for a public agency differ by jurisdiction — the agency and its counsel decide how any of this applies.