Water polo takes up much of Irvine resident Jae Park’s time.
Park is a father of two boys, ages 7 and 13, who both play water polo. They practice five days a week and play in tournaments two weekends a month.
Park said his family is “ecstatic” that Irvine’s council opted to include a state-of-the-art aquatics facility in the first phase of the Great Park‘s development.
Related: Irvine’s Great Park priority projects include concert venue, botanical gardens and aquatic facility
The aquatics center, in partnership with USA Water Polo, was initially not included in the phase one development plan. However, during a recent council meeting, community members overwhelmingly spoke in favor of prioritizing the $90 million, three-pool facility ahead of the 2028 Summer Olympics that will take place in Los Angeles.
Since water polo is a “winning sport for the United States in the Olympics,” Councilmember Mike Carroll said it was a “no-brainer” to include the facility in this next phase of Great Park development.
Groundbreaking for projects in this first phase could start within the next 30 to 45 days, Great Park Executive Director Pete Carmichael said. Groundwork and utilities installation is expected to begin in the spring of 2024.
All the projects included in the first phase, such as the aquatics facility, should be up and running by 2029, according to city documents.
Under the partnership agreement, USA Water Polo will pay $12 million toward the construction of the venue and get exclusive use of 10,000 square feet of it for its offices, classrooms and locker rooms and scheduling priorities for events. Its use of the facility would be capped at about 25% to 30% of its total operating hours.
Members of Orange County’s water polo community welcomed the move.
“Irvine is fast becoming the center of the water polo universe in the United States,” Park said. “I have no doubt that the Great Park aquatics facility will be a source of pride and…
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