Irvine Co. Gifts 2,500 Acres to Be Preserved as Open Space

Billionaire Donald Bren’s Irvine Co. today announced a gift of 2,500 acres near Orange and Anaheim Hills to the county to be preserved as open space.

Plans for 5,500 homes on the property was approved earlier.

The company has donated nearly 55,000 acres, or about 60 percent of Irvine Ranch, to the county as open space.

“As we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Irvine Company, this is a perfect opportunity to add to our open space and parklands legacy,” Bren said. “With this gift, we complete our open space vision.”

The property is visited by more than two million people annually, according to the Irvine Co.

The newly donated land is about the size of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco and San Diego’s Balboa Park combined.

The donated land in Anaheim Hills includes 1,100 acres bordered by the Riverside (91) Freeway and the Eastern (241) Toll Road and is next to open space in Gypsum and Weir Canyons that was given to the county in 2010.

“Part of the great quality of life we enjoy here in Orange County stems from those who had the foresight to value open space as much as development,” said Supervisor Todd Spitzer, whose third district included the donated land. “I want to thank the Irvine Company for forgoing their development approvals and providing this land gift for the public’s access and enjoyment.”

--City News Service

PHOTO The donation near Orange. Courtesy the Irvine Co.