The Great Park Plan

Introducing a New Kind of Park

The former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro is being transformed into the Orange County Great Park, the first great metropolitan park of the 21st Century.

The Great Park is in the geographic center of Orange County, California, a diverse metropolitan community of three million located halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego. The Great Park has direct freeway and rail access, making it easily accessible for more than 10,000,000 Southern California residents.

Spanning more than 1,300 acres, the Great Park will be nearly twice the size of New York’s Central Park. The Great Park’s award-winning Master Plan features cutting edge environmental design features that will set a new standard for sustainable park design and urban planning.

Orange County’s agricultural heritage will be preserved and the military history of the former air base will be honored. Sustainability, the wise and conservative use of energy, water, and other scarce resources, is central to the Park’s 21st Century design. Cutting-edge technologies will make the park sustainable, demonstrating eco-friendly design and construction techniques.

300 years ago, the ideal park was a manicured and formal place with straight lines and well-behaved plants. Even if you sought an escape to a natural environment, it was an environment that was very controlled. In the 19th Century, parks made the move to a more civic space, a place for the masses to enjoy fresh air and relief from the prevalent diseases of the time. In the 20th Century, the heartbeat of the park quickened with exercise sport, and more active forms of recreation.” — Great Park Design Studio

Upon completion, the Orange County Great Park will join Central Park in America’s inventory of national treasures and set a new standard for great metropolitan parks around the world. (Renderings by the Great Park Design Studio.)

Planned Features

Sports Park & Fields. At 165 acres, the Sports Park will feature a variety of sports facilities and programs to accommodate the County’s varied athletic interests. Some of the proposed amenities include soccer fields, bat and ball fields, a skateboard complex, a rock climbing wall, and a field house. A Great Lawn will accommodate picnickers, sunbathers, and Frisbee throwers. Large public events can be staged on the Great Lawn. Groves of citrus and acacia trees will remind visitors of Orange County’s rich agricultural heritage.
Great Canyon. The Canyon is the Great Park’s most distinctive element. Two miles long and up to 60 feet deep, the heavily planted Canyon is dramatically cooler than the surrounding urban areas. The Great Canyon is an oasis where visitors can stroll along paths and trails bordered by native palms, woodlands and Mediterranean ornamentals. A perennial stream with a string of small pools will run the length of the Great Canyon. A series of dramatic bridges will allow visitors to cross the canyon at various points, creating many opportunities to enjoy the view. The most dramatic of these bridges is the “Bridge of 2 Towers,” which connects a zig zag path across one of the widest parts of the Canyon.
Veterans Memorial. For over 50 years, MCAS El Toro served the country as a training facility in peacetime and a staging area for support of overseas military operations in times of conflict. The history of El Toro will be remembered at the Great Park Air Museum, where vintage aircraft will be displayed on remnants of the former runways. A veterans memorial will honor those who served our country. Learn more about El Toro’s history…/td>
Botanical Gardens. The Botanic Garden is the heart of the Great Park. Visitors will be able to observe Southern California’s plants in habitats up close and in detail. They will be able to experience, in a totally new way, the relationships between people and plants, food and health, society and setting. A “garden bridge” will link the garden to the cultural terrace.
Cultural Terrace. The Cultural Terrace is the cultural and social center of the Great Park. A hundred-foot-wide tree-lined terrace serves as a key pedestrian and social space linking the major cultural facilities. Here visitors can sip coffee, eat lunch at a cafe, people-watch, drop into the library or museum, or catch the free shuttle to other parts of the Park.
Wildlife Corridor. A three mile-long Wildlife Corridor along the Eastern border of the Great Park will provide a comfortable space for wildlife to migrate throughout the Park. This corridor provides a crucial “missing link” between the Cleveland National Forest to the north and Crystal Cove State Park to the south. It will play an important role in preserving a healthy ecosystem throughout Orange County.

Related Links

Comprehensive Master Plan: Contact the City of Irvine’s Office of Records at (949) 724-6281.
Schematic and Technical Drawings: Contact OCB Reprographics via email.