Countdown to 2000: Lifestyles

Greg Risling

In the immortal words of the movie world’s most swinging single, Austin

Powers, the 1960s were “groovy, baby.”

While most of the nation was coping with the prospects of another war,

the onslaught of “mind-expanding” drugs and new terminology such as “free

love,” Newport-Mesa was developing its own cultural character.

Business development was moving along rapidly while the cities attempted

to maintain their historical legacies. Both Costa Mesa and Newport Beach

added major shopping destinations -- South Coast Plaza in 1966 and

Fashion Island at year later.

Tourists were already unable to resist the attractive features of

Newport-Mesa. Its sprawling beaches, rolling terrain and coastal views

were like a slice of heaven.

Yet the area’s popularity became a headache for residents who put up with

tourists flooding the area.

One of Newport’s annual passages was Bal Week, which attracted thousands

of high school and college students to the area. Spurred by the

popularity of surfing, Newport Beach was clogged with traffic. And Surf

guitarist Dick Dale was a regular performer at the Rendezvous Ballroom.

Newly appointed police chief James Glavas was faced with handling the

commotion. In 1965, the police made more than 1,000 arrests during spring

break. Glavas said that was the first year his department made headway.

It was only a matter of time -- six years -- before Bal Week ceased to

exist.

Community leaders also wanted to preserve what it could of its short

history. One of the city’s oldest sites, the Estancia, was given to Costa

Mesa by the Segerstrom family in 1963. The five-acre site had an adobe

that was restored and dedicated as a historical monument three years

later.

As the decade closed, it was evident there would be further construction.

The Irvine Company held groundbreaking ceremonies for Newport Center, the

South Coast Town Center was built off Bristol Street, and Costa Mesa’s

first high-rise -- Bethel Towers, home to senior citizens -- was

completed in 1968.

Sources: “A Slice of Orange: The History of Costa Mesa,” by Edrick

Miller, 1970; “Newport Beach 75: 1906-1981,” by James Felton, 1981.