An Announcement That Changed Everything

On November 28, 2001, Irvine Company Chairman Donald Bren announced that 11,000 additional acres on The Irvine Ranch^® – much of them bordering Mountain Park – were being permanently protected as open space.

Suddenly, company planners found themselves presented with a rare challenge and opportunity: How to redesign a community that provides needed new homes while serving as the front porch to thousands of acres of some of the most visually striking and biologically diverse land in Southern California?

90 Percent Open Space
They grabbed the opportunity, and freshly approached the plan for Mountain Park. Previously approved for 8,000 homes and just 1,428 acres of parks and open space, Mountain Park has been completely reoriented to take advantage of its unique location to regional open spaces. Now, approximately 90 percent of the planning area – 2,653 out of 3,001 acres – is targeted for permanent open space, parks and trails.

One of the most exciting open space and recreational resources will be located in the community itself. The Gypsum Canyon Nature Trail will follow a major riparian wildlife corridor as it threads its way through the heart of the property along the valley floor. As it meanders for nearly a mile, the trail will be marked by oaks and sycamores and many other plants native to riparian habitats that in turn support a wide array of wildlife, from bobcats and coyotes to California ground squirrels and deer mice.

‘A Wonderful Wildlife Corridor’
“It is a unique, wonderful, beautiful wildlife corridor,” says Roger McErlane,The Irvine Company’s lead planner for Mountain Park. “Everything we’re doing is designed to reinforce this valley and the natural systems that support it.”

The Gypsum Canyon Nature Trail will serve as the unifying open space and recreational element for the new community. Using the trail, residents and the public will be able to enjoy numerous recreational activities, including hiking, bicycling, jogging and picnicking. Within the community, the public trail will link with other trails and footpaths that will wind their way through residential neighborhoods, parks and other amenities.

Into the Wild
The Gypsum Canyon Nature Trail ultimately will enable residents to connect with existing and planned trails leading to the wildlands and parks surrounding Mountain Park. These include Chino Hills State Park, Featherly Park and the Santa Ana River trail system north of the Riverside (91) Freeway; Weir and Fremont canyons; and Coal Canyon Ecological Reserve in the Cleveland National Forest. A staging area offering parking and trail information is planned just outside the community’s Gypsum Canyon entrance off Santa Ana Canyon Road.