Irvine Company facts for kids
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Irvine Company headquarters in Newport Beach, California
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| Private | |
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| Founded | 1864 |
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| Headquarters |
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United States
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Number of locations
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Chicago, New York City, Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Diego County, Silicon Valley |
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Area served
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California |
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Key people
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Donald Bren (Chairman) |
The Irvine Company LLC is a big American company that focuses on real estate development. This means they plan and build communities, homes, and businesses. Their main office is in Newport Beach, California. A large part of their work is in and around Irvine, California, which is a city they mostly designed themselves! The company was started by the Irvine family and is now owned by Donald Bren. Since it's a private company, we don't know exactly how much money it makes, but Donald Bren is known as one of the richest real estate developers in the United States.
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History of The Irvine Company
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The Irvine Company's story began in 1864. It started as a huge ranch, about 185 square miles in size. This ranch was formed by combining three large land areas from Mexico. James Irvine I and his partners, Benjamin and Thomas Flint, and Llewellyn Bixby, bought these lands.
One of the first pieces of land, Rancho San Joaquin, was bought because its owner had to sell it after a big drought. Later, they bought Rancho Lomas de Santiago, which was mostly hilly and used for sheep. The partners wanted to find the best ways to use their massive 120,000-acre land for farming.
When James Irvine I passed away in 1886, his son, James II, took over the ranch. He worked hard to grow more crops and raise more animals. In 1894, he officially turned the land into a company called The Irvine Company. For many years, until the 1970s, the company also raised cattle and sheep on the property.
Developing the Land
In 1953, a very large event called the 1953 National Scout Jamboree was held on the Irvine Ranch. This event brought many Boy Scouts to the area where the Fashion Island shopping center is today. A road called Jamboree Road was built to help people get to the event.
A big change happened in 1961. The Irvine Company sold 990 acres of land to the University of California for just $1.00! This land was used to build a new university campus, which became the University of California, Irvine. The school was named after the Irvine family. Three years later, the company sold even more land to the university at a low price.
In the early 1960s, the company worked with the university and an architect named William Pereira. They created a big plan for developing the land around the campus. This plan led to the creation of the city of Irvine, which officially became a city in 1971.
New Ownership
By the late 1970s, The Irvine Company stopped its cattle business. In 1977, a real estate developer named Donald Bren started buying shares of the company from the Irvine family. By 1983, Donald Bren owned most of The Irvine Company. By 1996, he owned the entire company, becoming its sole owner.
What The Irvine Company Does Today
The Irvine Company builds and manages many different types of properties. They create master-planned communities in Orange County, California. These are carefully designed neighborhoods with homes, schools, and parks. They also build homes in places like Santa Monica and Silicon Valley.
The company owns and manages many office buildings. You can find their office buildings in cities like Milpitas, San Jose, Newport Beach, Chicago, and New York City.
The Irvine Ranch Today
The original Irvine Ranch is still a very important part of The Irvine Company. It covers about 93,000 acres, which is almost one-fifth of Orange County. This land stretches from the Pacific Ocean to the Cleveland National Forest.
A large part of the ranch, about 44,000 acres, is used for development. But the rest of the land, including canyons and wetlands, is kept as wild areas and parks. These natural areas are known as the Irvine Ranch Natural Landmarks.
In 2014, The Irvine Company announced plans to give away and protect another 2,500 acres of land. This land was originally planned for housing, but now it will be preserved for nature. Because of their efforts to preserve land, the company was named Business Philanthropist of the Year in 2018. They also gave over $220 million to schools and universities in the area.
Cities and Properties
Many cities are located within the original boundaries of the Irvine Ranch. These include:
- Irvine
- Laguna Beach
- Anaheim (including Anaheim Hills)
- Tustin (including Tustin Ranch)
- Orange
- Newport Beach
The Irvine Company also owns several large shopping centers. These include The Market Place and Irvine Spectrum Center in Irvine. They also own Fashion Island in Newport Beach. The company manages many office buildings, including the MetLife Building in New York City. They own nearly 550 properties across Coastal California.
In 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, the company had to reduce its staff. This mainly affected their hotels and resorts.
See also
