For decades, the Boomers amusement park and Irvine Lanes have been popular destinations for family recreation in Irvine.
But, an update to the city’s zoning code in 2023 would have allowed the land owner of those properties to potentially replace those entertainment venues with apartments or condominiums.
That’s no longer the case.
The Irvine City Council recently voted to keep the 12 acres of land wedged between the San Diego Creek Trail and the 5 Freeway, Michelson Drive and Harvard Avenue, solely dedicated to commercial recreation, overturning its decision from a year ago to also permit housing there.
Councilmember Mike Carroll said the new decision reflects the intent of Irvine’s original master plan.
“(It) is consistent with our objectives for providing access to recreation, activities and sports that enhance quality of life,” he wrote in a city memo.
Last year, Irvine added a “housing overlay” to many parcels around town, keeping the original zoning code for many lots while allowing developers the option to build housing. It’s a strategy other cities in Orange County are employing as part of wide-ranging efforts to meet state housing mandates.
Irvine City Manager Oliver Chi said the land owner of the Boomers and Irvine Lanes property supported the zoning amendment and even reached out to the city to request that his property be added to the housing overlay zone. Chi said the land owner owns the bowling alley business and leases land to the neighboring amusement park, which offers miniature golf, go karts, batting cages, some small rides, an arcade and more.
Carroll said the owner must have bought the land with the knowledge that it was zoned for commercial recreation, and it should stay that way unless the city wants to “give that landowner a massive windfall.”
“We know that it’s absolutely more profitable to build housing than to run a recreational site,” Mayor Farrah Khan added.
City officials said they were unaware of any development plans in the works that might have affected Boomers or the bowling alley. The owner of the property did not speak at the council meeting, nor did a representative from the amusement park.
Councilmember Kathleen Treseder, the only councilmember who voted to keep the housing overlay over the Boomers parcel, said the city should not stand in the way of letting a developer do what he wishes.
“My take on this is the owners should be able to do what they want,” Treseder said. “If they are not interested anymore in the business of recreation, then I don’t want to be impeding their ability to use their land.”
Carroll pushed back, saying that it was the council’s responsibility to set land use regulations.
“The reason why you do zoning is to create a place where people would want to come and live,” he said.
Carroll argued that the property’s addition to the overlay zone last year was probably “overlooked” amid broader changes to Irvine’s zoning code.
He wanted to bring the discussion of this specific parcel back to the council’s attention because only about one in 200 acres of land in Irvine land is dedicated to commercial recreation, he said. The city also is home to Wild Rivers Waterpark at the Great Park.
“Maybe these folks can’t afford Disneyland, but I tell you that Boomers is packed all the time and so is that bowling alley,” he said. “I would imagine that a number of us have had birthday parties or had our kids’ birthday parties at that bowling alley.”
City officials said they were unaware of any development plans in the works that might have affected Boomers or the bowling alley. The owner of the property did not speak at the council meeting, nor did a representative from the amusement park.
