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Arriving
at the Park
Each of the major entrances to the Great Park will be a celebratory space
featuring water as a focal point. Arriving from Trabuco Road, visitors
encounter two dramatic reflecting pools with fountains. Here is will be
possible to park, sit, and enjoy the fountains, grab a bite to eat, or
shop at a farmers market. Beyond the fountains, a monumental gateway will
frame a spectacular view of the landscape. Visitors arriving at the Palm
Canyon Entry off Irvine Boulevard will find a grove of California fan palms
leading to a natural treatment wetland and the upper Canyon stream. At
the Orchard Entry off Marine Way there may be sinuous plantings of citrus
trees leading to the Lake, Cultural Terrace, and Botanical Garden. The
Agua Chinon Entry will be the gateway from which a newly restored stream
may be explored.
The
Canyon
This sinuous 60-foot deep canyon will be the park’s largest new
feature, replacing current flat topography of the former air base. The
Canyon will
act as a window into the Park with views from Marine Way on the Northern
end and Irvine Boulevard at the South. Many trails for hikers of all
abilities and cyclists will meander through an oasis of new vegetation,
including
native habitats and palm groves that will serve conservation interests.
Each turn on the trails will offer new experiences, a rocky outcrop with
lizard habitats, a turtle island in the new water feature, a fern grotto,
or varied slope shapes. Bridges will cross the Canyon bringing pedestrian
and vehicle access. The upper Canyon will be a quiet retreat, while the
lower Canyon will hold an extensive cultural terrace, amphitheatre, and
botanic garden. The Canyon will be magnet for the public with opportunities
for everyone with interests in nature, education or performances. Agua
Chinon
This stream corridor, long buried at the former El Toro Air Base, will
be uncovered and reconstructed to harbor native habitats while supporting
human activities. The natural water channels will be bordered with riparian
vegetation. Engineered features will slow water flows, serving conservation
needs. Restored side slopes will harbor native vegetation of shady oaks
and walnuts; the dryer soils will have wildflower meadows and coastal
sage scrub. This stream corridor will attract dozens of native bird species,
and be the site of recreation trails and education programs for the public.
The visual experience of Agua Chinon will change from season to season
and year to year. Access for all will be available through trails, and
many stops on the Great Park’s transportation system.
The
Bosque
The Great Park Bosque will form the western edge of the park. Housing
the Trabuco Road entrance of the Park, this will be one of the first
landscapes that will introduce visitors to the sustainability goals
of the Great
Park.
The species that may be included in the Bosque may be a blend of predominantly
native and non-invasive California friendly flowering trees with a mixture
of vegetated under story and open areas. These will offer opportunities
for wildlife viewing, education on the benefits of using sustainable
trees in the home landscape, quiet reflection, picnics, and casual strolling.
The Bosque may also offer visitors a shady respite, a place to meet
up with friends and a launching site to explore the rest of the Great
Park.
Cultural
Heritage
Decades of service to the nation by the Marine Corps will be honored
here. Visitors will be able to relive history by walking among actual
components
of the former El Toro airbase, which will stand as tributes. A central
section and the two end points of the great two-mile long, concrete
runway will remain. Its entire footprint will remain distinct as an
open space
at the park’s core that preserves a sense of the base’s
vast scale. Specific to the El Toro occupation of this land, a timeline
on the
historic taxiway will bisect the site including the commemoration of
major moments in history of the base. The runway markers, original
hangars, historic
planes, and museum will evoke the human dramas that played out during
the base’s long life. Within the Sports Park there is the Palm
Parade Ground for special events and displays, keeping the memorial
program fresh
and compelling. The memorial site will occupy an area of preserved
concrete at the central crossing point of the runway marking a contemplative
space
to reflect on the sacrifices that have anchored our freedoms. This
contemplative memorial pays homage to the service men and women, refugees,
and local
citizens who all shared this space to build the American future.
The
preservation of an open space corridor in the place of one of the
colossal north-south runways of the airbase reserves in the park will
give a sense
of the expansiveness that was once predominant in Orange County. Focusing
on the vistas at each end, the north of this axis delivers the Santa
Ana Mountains, while the southern end looks toward the coast, framing
the
San Joaquin Hills. Within the park, these views terminate a processional
spanning
the entire site, connecting adjacent neighborhoods with a programmed
corridor of open space. At one end will be an enormous open lawn called
the Bowling
Green, and at the other, a series of engaging plazas called the Promenade
of the Senses. Each designed to stimulate a different sense – sight,
touch, sound, smell, and taste.
The
Cultural Terrace
The Cultural Terrace will be the social and cultural center of the
Great Park. A hundred foot-wide shade tree-lined terrace will serve
as a key
pedestrian and social space linking the major cultural facilities.
Here, visitors can sip coffee, eat lunch at a café, people-watch,
drop into the future library or one of the museums. They can also
cross the
Conservatory Bridge to the Botanical Garden, or catch a shuttle to
other parts of the park. The cultural facilities will be nestled
inside a series
of sculpted earthen landforms that meander along the southern edge
of the Canyon, runway remnants, local foothills, and nearby Santa
Ana Mountains.
The
Botanical Garden
The Great Park Botanical Garden redefines the role of a world-class
botanic garden in the 21st century. It will be a showplace of spectacular
landscape
design, but also much more.
• A living classroom where children and adults experience the beauty and
fascination of plants as living organisms and learn how plants are
essential for the food, oxygen, and other needs that sustain life on Earth – including
human life.
• A living theater in which horticulture, ecology, art, and performance,
not signs filled with facts, will help visitors imagine a mutually beneficial
relationship between people, plants, and the natural environment of Southern
California.
• A place where visitors collaborate with scientists and other experts
to create a healthy, sustainable future for all.
• A beautiful series of spaces that illuminates the seasonal changes and
hydrological cycles of southern California.
• A
rich mosaic of synergistic human and natural ecosystems evolving together
over time.
Sports
Park
In
the southwest section of the Park, with quick access from Marine Way
and in the Life-long Learning district’s Main
Street, the world-class Sports Park will accommodate individual
and team sports, all ages and skill
levels. Among the facilities will be soccer fields, ball
and bat fields, a water sports park, a skate park, a climbing
wall, and courts for tennis,
frontenis, handball, and other activities. There will be
places for family and friends to picnic before and after games. Windows
and other plantings
will integrate the Sports Park into the larger Great Park
landscape.
Scattered
throughout the park will be additional spaces for athletic activity.
The Bosque will include areas for children’s
play, bocce, and impromptu games. The Bowling Green will
be available for lawn bowling and croquet.
In the upper Canyon there may be zip lines and other active
sport facilities, including mountain bikes. Trails that
traverse the park will accommodate
riding, walking, running and cross-country course. Together,
over 200 acres of the park will support a healthy, active
lifestyle.
The
Sports Park will be more than just the sum of its parts. It will be an
important social and urban extension
of the
adjacent communities.
Open
Meadows and Grove
Between the Bosque and the upper Canyon will be the Open
Meadows and Grove, where groves of citrus, nut, and
avocado trees
celebrate Orange
County’s
agricultural past. Flowering trees from the Bosque will
border the area, providing a shady connection with adjacent
neighborhoods.
A Great Lawn
will accommodate sunbathers, Frisbee players, and picnickers,
in addition to festivals and other large public gatherings.
An expansive wildflower
meadow dotted with lupines and poppies in spring and golden
sunflowers in fall will be crisscrossed by paths for close-up
views of butterflies
and songbirds.
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