A new master plan led by SWA Group has been revealed by the city of Irvine, California, showcasing a park design that, at 1,200 acres, would create one of the largest municipal park environments in the nation.
The so-called Irvine Great Park would transform the site of the historic former Marine Corps’ El Toro Air Station into what could evolve into a new national landmark for the 3.16 million residents of Orange County replete with educational offerings, modern sport and recreation facilities, and cultural attractions.
The framework SWA developed in unison with Kellenberg Studio calls for a five-zone subdivision of the site. A 200-acre Sports Park, Cultural Terrace, 60-acre Botanical Garden, and Veteran’s Memorial Park will join a linear park called the Bosque that features trails and a children’s play area. A central “Heart of the Park” zone completes the spatial design, featuring the 12,000-seat Great Park Amphitheater, a farm, and a three-tiered, 22-acre system of small lakes.
The firm says: “Each zone will have its own unique character and amenities and will be connected via a multimodal grand promenade, complete with tram stops, bike cabins, and important regional connections via a MetroLink stop on its southwest side.”
Plans also include an aviation museum in homage to the park’s status as a former military installation. Finally, the park will host a newly built $90 million Aquatics Center that will in turn serve as the home and training center of the USA Water Polo team and governing body.
“Creating a Great Park is an act of hope; planting trees and planning this endeavor is an investment in our future. Inspired by our collective heritage of celebrating the American landscape through our national parks, and the promise that nature holds, the Irvine Great Park will live, evolve, and serve for generations to come,” Sean O’Malley, the Managing Principal of SWA Group’s Laguna Beach office, said in a statement.
Costs for the current development have been reported at $720 million. SWA expects the next phase of construction to be completed by the summer of 2029.
4 Comments
Must this new grand park be a 100% formless "natural" blobscape? Is there absolutely notihng to be learned from the marvelous gardens of Renaissance Italy or 18th Century France? The metal trellis of WWII era fighter planes is just plain stupid - who will be comfortable with airplane-esque crap so low overhead as if an air-armada is falling from the sky? Where is the gathering place for 500,000 to 1,000,000 young music fans who will want to have their Lollapaloozas? This scheme has the vibe of an 85-year old drop-out from Royston Hanamoto, i.e. it is dull as f'ing hell. I hope whatever this becomes is crisscrossed with bicycle paths and given the number of senior seniors in Orange county - a network of geezer-cart pathways with plenty of portapottys. If this scheme proceeds can you puhleeeze put a curve in that 3-mile long runway that currently looks like an homage to Interstate 5 - the most boring highway in the USA. How about holding a professional peer-review of this conglomeration of eyewash and idiocy. Oh ! and sure, let's honor the former use of El Toro Marine fighter plane airbase whose aircraft crashed into neighboring homes and dumped fuel and toxic jet exhaust into the local atmosphere for decades.
Suggestion for peer review panel:
1. Marlon Blackwell
2. Peter Walker
3. Marta Fry
4. Ilhan Zeybekoglu
5. Mia and Michael Lehrer
6. Thom Mayne
7. Martha Schwartz
^^ I am not a big fan of the design per se, but I've never seen such a racist and discriminatory comment towards older people. You have no idea how you sound. Your in-the-know suggestions for a peer review are as useless as your obvious butthurt-inspired comments.
It's tough to tell at such a small scale just what the proposed SWA planned park will be like.
The notion of a peer review panel is not bad, but how 'bout running a national/international competition? There's got to be an aspiring Olmsted out there that could add some zest to the park.
One of the Great Park's greatest issues, as I see it, is the enormity of the park and who has a budget to do it all? And, over how many years?
On the topic of honoring the past, given the significance of the base, a memorial and museum would seem appropriate.
The park is so large that I hope the design provides expansion room for virtually every function and every structure as today's minds can't possibly accurately predict which of those functions will need to be modified. Too often, planners/designers trap themselves into little boxes, I hope that will not be the case here.
I agree with the person citing the poor comments by jimblake. They are prejudicial and show agism at its worst and demonstrate shear ignorance.
Best of luck in getting this right!
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