Significant progress is being made on Anaheim’s “OCVIBE” entertainment district, an effort to spruce up one of the premier tourism destinations in California during what officials call a “golden decade” for the area.
The $4 billion project is being financed in large part by the Samueli family, owners of the Anaheim Ducks and operators of the Honda Center, where the NHL club plays its home games.
The Honda Center will serve as the epicenter of the district, which will host restaurants, bars, shops, two hotels, apartment units and a 6,000 seat concert hall. The project was approved by the Anaheim city council in 2022 and broke ground last year.
“OCVIBE is a $4 billion master plan that has, as its anchor, live entertainment,” said Dan Young, the district’s executive director of development.
The goal of the new district is to bring a unified downtown area to Anaheim, which currently has a more disjointed feel due to entertainment destinations like the Honda Center, Angel Stadium and Disneyland being separated by shopping centers.
OCVIBE won’t just surround the hockey arena, however. It’ll span from Honda Center to the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center, connected by a pedestrian bridge. The walkable area will contain a grassy park with walking trails and plazas.
The public part of the project includes a $100 million transformation of the Santa Ana River that currently runs adjacent to the Honda Center. That river, now a muddy and unaesthetic eyesore, will soon be home to a “riverwalk” type of area for families to enjoy a nice day in the sun.
“We’re taking the Santa Ana River, that is really right now a little bit of a dumpsite so to speak, we’re going to bring back life to it,” said Rep. Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana), who represents Anaheim in Congress.
Government officials and business leaders view OCVIBE as a major tourism hub. Anaheim received more than 25 million tourists in 2023, the city says, and sees more potential to bring in visitors outside of just Disneyland.
“All I see is opportunity,” said Mike Waterman, president and CEO of Visit Anaheim. “This is going to be the ‘Golden Decade’ for Anaheim. From the transformative developments taking place to global events like the World Cup and Olympics coming to Southern California, Anaheim will continue to be the epicenter for tourism in Orange County.”
The project, still in the infant stages of construction, will open in phases. The first phase is expected to open to visitors in late 2026 or early 2027. It’ll start with five restaurant openings and the concert hall.
That phase will soon be followed with expansion of outdoor areas and nightlife, like clubs and more theaters for concerts and live events. An outdoor plaza is planned for watch parties.
The full project is estimated to be completed by 2032. By then, two hotels will occupy the property alongside office space and more than 2,000 apartment units.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source ktla.com ’
