The City of Costa Mesa boasts of being one of Orange County's leading cultural and business centers.

Located 37 miles southeast of Los Angeles, 88 miles north of San Diego and 475 miles south of San Francisco, Costa Mesa encompasses a total of 16 square miles with its southernmost border only 1 mile from the Pacific Ocean.

The current population of approximately 113,440 has grown from 16,840 at the time of incorporation in 1953. Since that time, it has evolved from a semi-rural farming community to a city with its local economy primarily based upon retail commercial business and light manufacturing of electronics, pharmaceuticals and plastics. A general law city, Costa Mesa has a council-manager form of government and staff of approximately 600 full-time employees.

Costa Mesa offers 9 parks, a municipal golf course, 26 public schools and 3 libraries. Additionally, Costa Mesa is home to Orange Coast College and Vanguard University as well as Whittier Law School and National University.

The Orange County Performing Arts Center, Orange County Fairgrounds, South Coast Repertory Theater and South Coast Plaza are prominent centers of cultural and economic activity within the City. The South Coast Plaza shopping center is the single largest commercial activity center in the City. The volume of sales generated by South Coast Plaza, on the strength of 322 stores, places it among the highest volume regional shopping centers in the nation.