Irvine, CA - In April, the Irvine City Council, acting as the Great Park Board of Directors, adopted the motion of Great Park Vice Chair and Irvine Councilmember Melissa Fox to approve construction of a new Wild Rivers Water Park on 30 acres at the Great Park in Irvine.

	Rendering of what new Great Park Wild Rivers will look like.

The old Wild Rivers Water Park closed in 2011 after 25 years in Irvine.

"I'm delighted to have made the motion on the City Council to bring Wild Rivers back to Irvine," Councilmember Fox said.

"We have missed having a water park in Irvine," Fox added.

Now the Great Park Board and the Irvine City Council have approved an agreement with the owners of Wild Rivers to to begin site planning and drafting the lease for the new 30-acre water park at the Orange County Great Park.

Wild Rivers CEO Mike Riedel first approached city officials about moving to the Great Park the year Wild Rivers closed. Last year, rather than granting Wild Rivers a no-bid contract, the council first decided to seek more proposals.  In April, the City Council approved a motion by Councilmember Melissa Fox to go forward with the Wild Rivers proposal.

"Wild Rivers has been an icon in the city of Irvine," Councilmember Melissa Fox explained. "I was a kid sliding down the water slides at the old Wild Rivers, and I was a young mom taking my son there on hot summer days. We know that Wild Rivers provides fun and safe water parks, and they've always had a great relationship with the residents and the City of Irvine. We look forward to having them back in Irvine very soon."

Wild Rivers will build a new water park with waterslides, an uphill water coaster, water play structures for children, a wave pool, a lazy river and Wild Rivers' popular Congo River Rapids.

Here is great video report from ABC News:  Beloved SoCal Water Park Set to Make a Splash with its Reopening in 2019 .

I recently had the opportunity to visit the Irvine studio of world-famous artist Robert Wyland.    

	Councilmember Melissa Fox and Wyland.

Renowned marine life artist Wyland changed the way people think about our environment when he started painting life-size whales on the sides of buildings in the 1980s. Wyland always thought big. And he never stopped.

Today, the Wyland name has become synonymous with the new generation of awareness about environmental conservation.

Through his unique marine life paintings, sculptures, and photography, Wyland has inspired a generation about the importance of marine life conservation. His life - like his art - can find him anywhere around the world, at any time, from the Antarctic ice shelf on a photo expedition to document climate change to a grassroots journey down the Mississippi River on a mission of conservation.

The multi-faceted artist, scuba diver, educator, and explorer has hosted several television programs, including, "Wyland's Ocean World" series on the Discovery Channel's Animal Planet Network, "Wyland: A Brush With Giants" and "Wyland's Art Studio," a series for national public television. His mission of engaging people through nature-themed art and a more environmentally friendly lifestyle has led to strategic alliances with such notable organizations as the United States Olympic Team, United Nation Environment Program, and Walt Disney Studios.

In partnership with the United States Forest Service and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Wyland is actively engaged in teaching millions of students around the world to become caring, informed stewards of our ocean, rivers, lakes, estuaries, and wetlands.  

The studio is also the headquarters of the Wyland Foundation,  a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting, protecting, and preserving the world's ocean, waterways, and marine life. The Wyland Foundation encourages environmental awareness through education programs, public arts projects, and community events.  

One of the ways that the Wyland Foundation accomplishes this goal is through the  Wyland Clean Water Mobile Learning Center, which has traveled coast-to-coast bringing education about water quality, water resource availability, and conservation to over 1 million kids and their families, including many schools whose field trips, science and art budgets have been drastically cut.

The Wyland Foundation also sponsors the Annual National Mayor's Challenge for Water Conservation, a friendly competition between cities across the US to see who can be the most "water-wise." 

We are so fortunate that this wonderful artist and conservationist is located in our city.  

I am looking forward to more collaborations between the City of Irvine and the Wyland Foundation.

Come visit the Wyland Mobile Learning Center at the Great Park Sports Park opening on August 5!

Summer is a time for fun in the water, especially here in Southern California.

But far too often this summer, as a member of the Board of Directors of the Orange County Fire Authority, I have received a notice that there has been another drowning or near drowning at our local swimming pools.

The news was particularly devastating recently: A 5-year-old girl was drowned in an Irvine swimming pool. She was found at 4:23 p.m. in a community pool at 120 Spring Valley. It was too late.   Please, please, please be vigilant and assign a Water Watcher at all times near water, so these tragedies can be prevented!

	Irvine Community Services Commissioner Lauren Johnson with Water Watcher tag.

Drowning continues to be the leading cause of accidental death among children age five and under. The majority of drowning and near drowning incidents occur in residential swimming pools.

The good news is that drowning is 100% preventable!

To combat this needless tragedy, never swim alone and volunteer to be a Water Watcher.

A Water Watcher is a responsible adult who agrees to watch the children in the water without distractions, and to wear a Water Watcher tag.

The Water Watcher wears a tag stating:

"Wearing this tag, I accept responsibility to supervise the children in and around the water, keeping them in sight at all times.  To prevent children from drowning, I'll avoid distractions such as talking on the phone, reading, or poolside chats.  Before I leave the area, I will give this tag to the next adult water watcher who can swim."

After a certain amount of time (such as 15-minutes), the Water Watcher card is passed to another adult, who is then responsible for the active supervision.

Water Watcher tags are available at  your nearest Orange County Fire Authority Fire Station.   You can call OCFA at 714-573-6200.

If you're in Irvine, I will bring Water Watcher tags to you. Send me an email at [email protected].

Drowning is preventable.  Let's prevent it from happening in our communities.

Let's make Irvine the nation's Safest City for Swimming!