IRVINE – The Irvine Co. plans to spend $30 million to revitalize the Woodbridge Village Center, which hasn’t been updated since it was built in 1979 and has struggled in recent years to keep tenants, the company announced Wednesday.

A two-story building at the center will be demolished and the inner courtyard – home to the center’s two beloved frog statues – will be expanded into a broader area for outdoor dining and gatherings.

“We listened closely to what the community wanted to see at Woodbridge Village Center, and this reinvestment is the result of what we heard,” said Dave Moore, president of Irvine Co. Retail Properties.

The revitalization is slated to start in August and finish in the second half of 2017, Moore said.

As “for lease” signs multiplied in recent years, rumors swirled that the Irvine Co. would raze the center and put up apartments.

A community group called Friends of Woodbridge Village Center formed to oppose any move to demolish the center, which has remained a gathering place for many local residents even as its vacant storefronts have multiplied.

The center is in the middle of Irvine’s Village of Woodbridge, which encompasses about 9,600 homes and 30,000 residents.

Wednesday’s announcement seemingly sets those concerns to rest.

“We’re taking everything that people love about Woodbridge Village Center and transforming it into even more of a community gathering place with new amenities and updated features,” Moore said.

Irvine student Morgan Kopecky, 14, last year organized an appreciation event in support of the center and its tenants after hearing rumors it could be going away.

On Wednesday evening she called the new plan for Woodbridge Village Center, where she often spends time with friends and family, an “amazing” upgrade.

“My favorite change is the expansion of the courtyard to take advantage of the beautiful lake view and promote community gatherings,” said Kopecky, a high school freshman.

Longtime retailers Barnes & Noble, Ruby’s Diner and Woodbridge 5, Irvine’s oldest movie theater, will remain.

Negotiations are underway with other tenants, including those in the building to be knocked down, which houses a hot-yoga studio and offices. Some may relocate within the center or to other Irvine Co. shopping centers, Moore said.

A “national, small-format” grocery store will open a location in the center; the name of that store and of other new tenants will be announced throughout the year, Moore said.

Taking out the building along Barranca Parkway will shrink the square footage on the 17-acre site by nearly 15,000 square feet, to 155,000 square feet, creating space for an “expansive” dining and gathering spot overlooking North Lake, Moore said.

The hand-painted tiles that line the courtyard aren’t salvageable due to their age, so each will be memorialized as a digital image, said Easther Liu, chief marketing officer for Irvine Company Retail Properties.

The frogs, Woody and Bridget, will remain, Liu added.

Contact the writer: sdecrescenzo@ocregister.com