Council OKs Lake Forest recreation center design

LAKE FOREST – A new community recreation center planned for the city's sports park will be built in a Craftsman style and will include heavy timber, porches, plaster wall and stacked stone pillars.

These elements are part of conceptual plans presented by architects to the City Council on Tuesday night. The design concepts were created from comments by the City Council during an earlier review of plans in December. The City Council thanked the design group for taking their input and including it in the revised plans.

The recreation center will provide opportunities for community fitness classes, dance classes and arts and crafts for children. Most all activities now found at the current City Hall on Commercentre Drive would be relocated to the recreation center.

REPORTED BY ERIKA I. RITCHIE, RENDERING COURTESY OF CITY OF LAKE FOREST

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The City Council voted to allow the architect to prepare construction drawings and bid specifications. Construction could start by fall.

Additional considerations reviewed by the City Council included the sizes of meeting and activity rooms and the opportunity for creating rooms for multi-purposes.

Mayor Kathryn McCullough questioned whether the planned restrooms were adequately sized for the expected number of recreation center users.

The restrooms will include more than are actually required by the building code based on the size of the building.

The center will provide opportunities for community fitness classes, dance classes and arts and crafts for children. Most all activities now found at the current City Hall on Commercentre Drive would be relocated to the center.

Plans for the park are 80 percent complete. Clearing and grubbing of the Glass Creek and Baker properties was done in January. The extension of Rancho Parkway— which will provide access to the park — is expected to be done by the end of the year. Mass grading of the site is scheduled to begin in late spring; construction of the amenities at the park could start in August.

The new sports park will be located on 86 acres near the intersection of Portola Parkway and El Toro Road.

Contact the writer: 949-454-7307 or eritchie@ocregister.com or twitter.com/lagunaini

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Council OKs Lake Forest recreation center design