IRVINE : Plans for 36-Acre Park Approved by Council

After years of planning, the City Council this week approved plans for an $18.8-million park, planned to be the crown jewel of the city’s park system.

Now all the city needs is the money to build it. “We’re trying to identify funding sources, but right now we don’t have all the answers,” Councilman Barry J. Hammond said.

“But you can rest assured that we’re looking for them. When I was elected in 1990, it was one of my top priorities to get this thing moving.”

The city has $1.5 million set aside for park construction, which Hammond hopes can be used for the first phase of the 36-acre park.

But Councilwoman Christina L. Shea said financial concerns must be resolved before park construction begins.

The site, just north of City Hall, is bordered by Civic Center Plaza, Harvard Avenue, Barranca Parkway and the San Diego Creek Channel.

Park plans call for a 750-seat baseball field and three multipurpose playing fields. Also proposed are a community center, gymnasium, tennis courts and several garden areas.

Council members will be asked in January to approve plans for a privately funded roller hockey rink on the northwest corner of the park on Barranca Parkway.

After years of planning and months of meetings between community representatives and city officials, the 36-acre park design was approved by the council Tuesday with no opposition.

Nearby residents in the Corte Bella neighborhood had initially opposed the park design.

“We believe a true consensus has been achieved,” Corte Bella Homeowner Assn. President Carl Laufer told council members.