LAGUNA HILLS : Dedication Saturday for City’s First Park

Capping the first major municipal development project since the city was incorporated nearly three years ago, the 8.8-acre Cabot Park is scheduled to open Saturday to great excitement from parents and officials alike.

The park, located at the corner of Rapid Falls and Cabot roads, will include the first city-owned soccer and baseball fields.

Dave Lewis, director of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, calls the $1.8-million park “the biggest thing that has happened yet in the city.” Bill Howlick, a regional commissioner with the American Youth Soccer Organization, terms the facility a “fantastic” development.

“It is a great thing for the kids,” said Howlick, who lives in Laguna Hills and has two children who play soccer. “It’ll rival the quality parks that Mission Viejo and Laguna Niguel have built over the years. We’ve needed quality sports fields for a while.”

The park will contain two Little League baseball fields--which can be divided into four small soccer fields--a tot lot, a horse trail, picnic tables, restrooms and a 90-car parking lot.

A short dedication ceremony, which will include music by the Laguna Hills High School marching band and light refreshments, will begin at 10 a.m.

Players in the boys’ and girls’ kindergarten divisions of American Youth Soccer Organization Region 85, which includes Lake Forest, Laguna Hills, Foothill Ranch and portions of Aliso Viejo, will use the park six days a week throughout the fall.

Creation of the park ran into some opposition from neighbors, who expressed concerns about parking and traffic. As a result there will be no parking on the south side of Rapid Falls Road alongside the park, Parking on the north side will be restricted to residents.

Creation of more athletic facilities for Laguna Hills youngsters was a focus of the city incorporation effort in 1991.

A family movie night in the new park is planned for Sept. 17.