Orange County Almanac

For decades, Irvine teen-agers bemoaned the lack of fun spots in the city. A night of miniature golf and video games meant driving to amusement centers in Fountain Valley or Anaheim.

Not anymore.

This summer, Irvine got its first amusement park. Palace Park, at Harvard and Michelson avenues, features golf, bumper boats, batting cages, rows of video games and a McDonald’s restaurant.

A second park, the Irvine Family Fun Center, is scheduled to open in the Irvine Spectrum area by next summer. In addition to two, 18-hole miniature golf courses, go-carts and other typical fun-center fare, the park will feature a “virtual reality” flight simulator.

Today

Guitarist Jeff Cogan will perform at 8 p.m. at the Chapman University School of Music in Orange.

Cogan is a guitar instructor at the university and serves as director of the Chapman Guitar Ensemble. He will perform works by Granados, Barrios, Bernstein, Lauro and Villa-Lobos. He will also perform Argento’s “Letters From Composers” with soprano Patricia Prunty.

The event will take place at the Salmon Recital Hall. Admission is free. Information: (714) 997-6871.