Introduction to Costa Mesa California
Incorporated in 1953, Costa Mesa is a city located in Orange County in Southern California. Costa Mesa is approximately 45 minutes southeast of Los Angeles, 20 minutes south of Anaheim, 5 minutes east of Newport Beach and an hour and a half northwest of San Diego. Costa Mesa's southernmost border is only one mile from the Pacific Ocean. Costa Mesa is also only 10 minutes from the John Wayne Orange County Airport.
The area that is now Costa Mesa was originally used as grazing land by Mission San Juan Capistrano. Early attempts to settle the area in the 1880s failed. Costa Mesa started as the Town of Harper, which changed its name to Costa Mesa in 1920. Costa Mesa means coastal tableland in Spanish
Costa Mesa Arts, Culture, and Entertainment
Costa Mesa residents can take advantage of all of the arts and entertainment attractions of Anaheim and Los Angeles to the north, as well as San Diego to the south. Some of the attractions of note in and around Costa Mesa include:
- The Ampitheater
- The Aquarium of the Pacific
- The Bowers Museum
- Disneyland
- Knott's Berry Farm
- The Orange County Fairgrounds, home to the Orange County Fair every July
- Orange County Fine Arts Inc. and the Showcase Gallery
- The Orange County Museum of Art at South Coast Plaza
- The Orange County Theatre District, home to the Segerstrom Center for the Arts, the Orange County Performing Arts Center and the South Coast Repertory.
- The Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace
- The South Coast Repertory Theater
This part of Southern California has enough professional sports offerings to keep even the most demanding sports fans happy. Sports teams near Costa Mesa, include:
- The Los Angeles Avengers of the Arena Football League (AFL)
- The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB)
- Club Deportivo Chivas USA and the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer (MLS)
- The Lake Elsinore Storm of Minor League Baseball (MiLB). The Storm are a Class A Advanced affiliate of the San Diego Padres
- The Los Angeles Clippers and the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA)
- The Anaheim Mighty Ducks and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL)
- The Los Angeles Storm, and Southern California Seahorses who play in the United Soccer League's (USL) Premier Development League
- The Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA
For sports fans who do not mind an hour and a half drive south, the city of San Diego is also home to:
- The Major League Baseball (MLB) San Diego Padres
- The National Football League (NFL) San Diego Chargers
- The ECHL Sand Diego Gulls hockey team
- The United Soccer League (USL) USL Premier Development League San Diego Gauchos and the USL W-League San Diego Gauchos Women
