Profiles : SARAH BROADBENT: ACTIVIST : Embracing the Diversity and Potential of Area

For Sarah Broadbent and her family, life is good in Santa Ana. She, husband Jeff Logston and their two daughters have lived in a $250,000 home in the city’s Washington Square neighborhood since 1978.

“We were looking for a quiet neighborhood to raise our family, and this seemed to fit the bill,” said Broadbent, 36. “I think it’s a great place to live, and we’ve never regretted moving here. Friends who wonder why we live here stop wondering when they see our tree-lined neighborhood. “It’s a small-town atmosphere in the middle of an urban environment,” she said.

Broadbent said the neighborhood’s mix of Latino and Anglo residents makes life more interesting.

“I view the cultural diversity in a positive way,” Broadbent said. “My little girls wanted to know if they were going to have a big 15th birthday party, which is part of the Mexican heritage.

“It’s been really neat for us to watch one of our neighbors prepare one for their daughter.”

Broadbent’s daughters attend private schools, as she did when she was growing up in Santa Ana. A graduate of UC Irvine, Broadbent works as an environmental manager for Waste Management Co. in Irvine.

Four years ago, Broadbent and three of her neighbors formed the Washington Square Neighborhood Assn. that now has a membership of 250 households.

She said the association often has to take the lead on issues affecting their neighborhood when city officials won’t.

“Unfortunately, what we’ve seen is that the City Council has taken a very cautious approach and are very reluctant to try new things,” she said.