costa mesa, california costa mesa, california costa mesa (/ˌkoʊstə ˈmeɪsə/; spanish for "table coast") is a city in orange county, california, united states. since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to an urban area including part of the south coast plaza–john wayne airport edge city, one of the region's largest commercial clusters, with an economy based on retail, commerce, and light manufacturing. the city is home to the two tallest skyscrapers in orange county. the population was 111,918 at the 2020 census. costa mesa, californiacitydiego sepúlveda adobe flagsealmotto: "city of the arts!"location of costa mesa in orange county, californiacosta mesalocation within greater los angelesshow map of the los angeles metropolitan areacosta mesalocation in californiashow map of californiacosta mesalocation in the united statesshow map of the united statescoordinates: 33°39′54″n 117°54′44″wcountryunited statesstatecaliforniacountyorangeincorporatedjune 29, 1953government • typecouncil-manager • mayorjohn stephens • mayor pro temandrea marr • city councildon harperloren gamerosmanuel chavezjeff harlanarlis reynolds • city managerlori ann farrell harrisonarea • total15.81 sq mi (40.96 km2) • land15.81 sq mi (40.94 km2) • water0.01 sq mi (0.02 km2) 0.29%elevation98 ft (30 m)population (2020) • total111,918 • rank8th in orange county60th in california • density7,080.73/sq mi (2,733.85/km2)demonymcosta mesantime zoneutc−8 (pst) • summer (dst)utc−7 (pdt)zip codes92626–92628area code714/657/949fips code06-16532gnis feature ids1652692, 2410239websitewww.costamesaca.gov history don bernardo yorba, a wealthy californio ranchero, owned rancho santiago de santa ana, which included all of modern-day costa mesa. members of the tongva and acjachemen nations long inhabited the area. the tongva villages of lupukngna, at least 3,000 years old, and the shared tongva and acjachemen village of genga, at least 9,500 years old, were located in the area on the bluffs along the santa ana river. after the 1769 expedition of gaspar de portolà, a spanish expedition led by junípero serra named the area vallejo de santa ana (valley of saint anne). on november 1, 1776, mission san juan capistrano became the area's first permanent european settlement in alta california, new spain. in 1801, the spanish empire granted 62,500 acres (253 km2) to jose antonio yorba, which he named rancho san antonio. yorba's great rancho included the lands where the communities of olive, orange, villa park, santa ana, tustin, costa mesa and newport beach stand today. after the mexican-american war, california became part of the united states, and american settlers arrived in this area and formed the town of fairview in the 1880s near the modern intersection of harbor boulevard and adams avenue. however, a flood in 1889 wiped out the railroad serving the community, and it shriveled. to the south, meanwhile, the community of harper had arisen on a siding of the santa ana and newport railway, named after a local rancher. this town prospered on its agricultural goods. on may 11, 1920, harper changed its name to costa mesa, which means "mountain coast" in spanish. this is a reference to the city's geography as being a plateau by the coast. fanny bixby spencer and her husband sponsored the contest which selected the city's new name. costa mesa surged in population during and after world war ii, as many thousands trained at santa ana army air base and returned after the war with their families. within three decades of incorporation, the city's population had nearly quintupled. geography costa mesa is located 37 miles (60 km) southeast of los angeles, 87 miles (140 km) northwest of san diego and 425 miles (684 km) southeast of san francisco. costa mesa encompasses a total of 16 square miles (41 km2) with its southernmost border only 1 mile (1.6 km) from the pacific ocean. according to the united states census bureau, the city has a total area of 15.7 square miles (41 km2). 15.7 square miles (41 km2) of it is land and 0.05 square miles (0.13 km2) of it (0.29%) is water. climate costa mesa has a semi-arid climate (köppen climate classification bsh) with mild temperatures year round. rain falls primarily in the winter months and is close to nonexistent during the summer. morning low clouds and fog are common due to its coastal location. climate data for john wayne airport, california, 1998–2020 normals, extremes 1998–present month jan feb mar apr may jun jul aug sep oct nov dec year record high °f (°c) 90(32) 91(33) 95(35) 99(37) 99(37) 96(36) 99(37) 100(38) 110(43) 106(41) 100(38) 90(32) 110(43) mean maximum °f (°c) 83.1(28.4) 81.5(27.5) 83.2(28.4) 87.3(30.7) 85.6(29.8) 85.0(29.4) 89.0(31.7) 90.5(32.5) 97.0(36.1) 93.8(34.3) 88.6(31.4) 79.7(26.5) 99.6(37.6) average high °f (°c) 67.0(19.4) 66.7(19.3) 67.7(19.8) 70.2(21.2) 71.3(21.8) 74.1(23.4) 78.9(26.1) 80.4(26.9) 79.9(26.6) 76.5(24.7) 71.9(22.2) 66.5(19.2) 72.6(22.6) daily mean °f (°c) 57.8(14.3) 58.4(14.7) 60.0(15.6) 62.6(17.0) 65.3(18.5) 68.3(20.2) 72.5(22.5) 73.8(23.2) 72.5(22.5) 67.8(19.9) 62.6(17.0) 57.4(14.1) 64.9(18.3) average low °f (°c) 48.6(9.2) 50.1(10.1) 52.3(11.3) 54.9(12.7) 59.3(15.2) 62.6(17.0) 66.2(19.0) 67.1(19.5) 65.0(18.3) 59.2(15.1) 53.3(11.8) 48.3(9.1) 57.2(14.0) mean minimum °f (°c) 39.8(4.3) 40.7(4.8) 44.8(7.1) 48.8(9.3) 53.5(11.9) 58.3(14.6) 61.8(16.6) 62.7(17.1) 59.7(15.4) 53.3(11.8) 44.8(7.1) 39.2(4.0) 37.7(3.2) record low °f (°c) 33(1) 36(2) 41(5) 41(5) 49(9) 54(12) 57(14) 58(14) 56(13) 46(8) 37(3) 36(2) 33(1) average precipitation inches (mm) 2.59(66) 2.64(67) 1.62(41) 0.52(13) 0.27(6.9) 0.01(0.25) 0.04(1.0) 0.01(0.25) 0.10(2.5) 0.54(14) 0.80(20) 2.04(52) 11.18(284) average precipitation days 5.6 7.4 5.7 3.7 1.9 0.7 0.7 0.1 0.6 3.3 4.7 6.9 41.3 source: noaa demographics historical population censuspop.note%± 196037,550—197072,66093.5%198082,56213.6%199096,35716.7%2000108,72412.8%2010109,9601.1%2020111,9181.8%u.s. decennial census 2010 at the 2010 census costa mesa had a population of 109,960. the population density was 7,004.0 inhabitants per square mile (2,704.3/km2). the racial makeup of costa mesa was 75,335 (68.5%) white (51.8% non-hispanic white), 1,640 (1.5%) african american, 686 (0.6%) native american, 8,654 (7.9%) asian, 527 (0.5%) pacific islander, 17,992 (16.4%) from other races, and 5,126 (4.7%) from two or more races. hispanic or latino of any race were 39,403 persons (35.8%). the census reported that 106,990 people (97.3% of the population) lived in households, 2,232 (2.0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 738 (0.7%) were institutionalized. there were 39,946 households, 12,298 (30.8%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 16,478 (41.3%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 4,369 (10.9%) had a female householder with no husband present, 2,392 (6.0%) had a male householder with no wife present. there were 3,013 (7.5%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 281 (0.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 10,963 households (27.4%) were one person and 2,775 (6.9%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. the average household size was 2.68. there were 23,239 families (58.2% of households); the average family size was 3.30. the age distribution was 23,682 people (21.5%) under the age of 18, 12,847 people (11.7%) aged 18 to 24, 38,211 people (34.7%) aged 25 to 44, 25,106 people (22.8%) aged 45 to 64, and 10,114 people (9.2%) who were 65 or older. the median age was 33.6 years. for every 100 females, there were 103.7 males. for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.7 males. there were 42,120 housing units at an average density of 2,682.9 per square mile, of the occupied units 15,799 (39.6%) were owner-occupied and 24,147 (60.4%) were rented. the homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.9%. 42,517 people (38.7% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 64,473 people (58.6%) lived in rental housing units. during 2009–2013, costa mesa had a median household income of $65,830, with 15.1% of the population living below the poverty line. 2000 at the 2000 census there were 108,724 people in 39,206 households, including 22,778 families, in the city. the population density was 6,956.3 inhabitants per square mile (2,685.8/km2). there were 40,406 housing units at an average density of 2,585.2 per square mile (998.2/km2). the racial makeup of the city was 69.48% white, 1.40% black or african american, 0.78% native american, 6.90% asian, 0.60% pacific islander, 16.57% from other races, and 4.27% from two or more races. 31.75% of the population were hispanic or latino of any race. of the 39,206 households 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.8% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.9% were non-families. 28.1% of households were one person and 6.3% were one person aged 65 or older. the average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.34. the age distribution was 23.2% under the age of 18, 11.2% from 18 to 24, 39.0% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 8.4% 65 or older. the median age was 32 years. for every 100 females, there were 105.0 males. for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.9 males. the median household income was $50,732 and the median family income was $55,456. males had a median income of $38,670 versus $32,365 for females. the per capita income for the city was $23,342. about 8.2% of families and 12.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.0% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over. housing measure y is a ballot initiative approved by voters in 2016. it requires public approval of projects that have a general plan amendment or zoning change and would add 40 or more dwelling units or 10,000 or more square feet of commercial space. the median housing price is $807,000 ($505 per sq ft) and $3,500 for the median rent per month. economy the city's economy relies heavily on retail and services. the largest center of commercial activity is south coast plaza, a shopping center noted for its architecture and size. the volume of sales generated by south coast plaza, on the strength of its more than 270 stores, places it among the highest volume regional shopping centers in the nation. it generates more than $1 billion per year in revenue. south coast metro is a commercial, cultural, and residential district surrounding south coast plaza in northern costa mesa and southern santa ana, itself part of the south coast plaza–john wayne airport edge city. some manufacturing activity also takes place in the city, mostly in the industrial, southwestern quarter, which is home to a number of electronics, pharmaceuticals and plastics firms. business services company experian is the largest employer in the city, and has its north american headquarters in costa mesa. ceradyne, el pollo loco, emulex, hurley, rvca, toyota racing development, the trinity broadcasting network, vans, and volcom are among the businesses headquartered in costa mesa. a local newspaper, the daily pilot, is published by the los angeles times. newport boulevard, 1950s wahoo's fish taco was founded in costa mesa in 1988 by chinese-brazilian brothers eduardo "ed" lee, renato "mingo" lee and wing lam. costa mesa offers 26 parks, a municipal golf course, 26 public schools and two libraries. top employers according to the city's 2020 comprehensive annual financial report, the top employers in the city are: # employer # of employees 1 winfield locks, inc. 5,009 2 el pollo loco 3,998 3 experian 3,700 4 coast community college district foundation 1,313 5 contech engineered solutions inc. 1,288 6 automobile club of southern california 1,200 7 ibm filenet 1,131 8 deloitte & touche llp 700 9 dynamic cooking systems 700 10 sure haven 550 arts and culture annual cultural events the orange county fair takes place at the fairgrounds in costa mesa each july. the fair receives more than one million visitors each year. the annual scarecrow & pumpkin festival was first held in 1938, went on hiatus for seven decades, and then was restarted in 2013. facilities fairgrounds, costa mesa, in 2020adjacent to the fairgrounds is the pacific amphitheatre, which has hosted acts such as madonna, jessica simpson, steppenwolf, and kelly clarkson. the segerstrom center for the arts and south coast repertory theater are based in the city. los angeles chargers costa mesa has been home to the nfl's los angeles chargers training center, training camp and cooperate headquarters since 2017. the team agreed to a lease with the facility they moved into prior to their relocation from san diego. the building is a former office space, but chargers players and coaches said it was an upgrade from what the team had in san diego. the team has a 10-year lease on the building and plans to stay there until 2024 when it will depart it for a purpose built practice facility in el segundo. the team gutted the first floor of the building to make room for team rooms. construction cost