City founder Wilson dies at 86

Deirdre Newman

Bob Wilson, the man who gave his heart and soul to making Goat Hill a

bona fide city, passed away Sunday.

Wilson, 86, died at home in Costa Mesa of congestive heart

failure.

The man who persevered in getting Costa Mesa incorporated showed

the same determination in his final days. Wilson told the Pilot last

month that he wanted to make it to Christmas so he could spend the

day with four generations of his family.

His Christmas wish came true, to the delight of his family, in

true Bob Wilson fashion, daughter Carol Wilt said.

“It was apropos of my Dad -- totally in control, totally making it

happen as he wanted it,” Wilt said. “He did it, he held on.”

Last year, he and Wilt finished writing his autobiography for his

family entitled, “C+ -- The Life and Times of Robert ‘Bob’ M.

Wilson.” The grade he gave himself reflects his belief that he was

“academically just above average.”

The grade he deserves for his contribution to the city is more

like an A, said Gladys Refakes, spokeswoman for the Costa Mesa

Historical Society and a longtime friend of Wilson.

“I think he made as many contributions, if not more, than a good

many of the mayors at that particular time,” Refakes said. “Everyone

suddenly became interested in the welfare of Costa Mesa. And as it

grew, his ideas sort of grew and went along with all the new things

that came along.”

Wilson was born in 1917 in Seattle and was adopted when he was 4

months old. The Wilsons raised Bob in Tacoma, Wash., and he graduated

from high school in 1936. He set his sights on going to college at

USC, but only got as far as Glendale Junior College, Wilt said.

That was far enough to meet his wife of 65 years, Maryalice. They

met at her friend’s house, but Bob waited a year to ask her out

because he was a starving college student, she recalled. For their

first date, Bob took her to one of his track meets.

“I guess I wanted to show off my javelin throwing skills!!!” Bob

wrote in his autobiography.

The Wilson’s bought their first home in Costa Mesa in 1948 on East

Flower Street. Their home soon became a hotbed of activism: those who

wanted to see the area become a city met there for brainstorming

sessions.

Wilson was one of the most ardent visionaries who buoyed the

incorporation movement, Refakes said.

“Most people thought they didn’t want to make changes, taxes would

go up, and all sorts of other horrible things would happen,” Refakes

said. “But he had the foresight, along with a lot of other people,

that could see a future for Costa Mesa other than just the suburban,

country-style town that it was. And he strove to help achieve a

number of different things.”

Incorporation supporters triumphed on June 29, 1953.

That same year, Wilson was appointed to the Planning Commission

and served as its chairman. In 1960, he was elected to the City

Council, where he served for 16 years, including three stints as

mayor.

During his political life, he spearheaded the building of the

first City Hall, helped bring the Costa Mesa Golf and Country Club to

the city, and aided the acquisition of the land for Fairview Park. He

and the rest of a group of American mayors he was traveling with were

taken hostage in Beirut in the early 1970s. Luckily, the ordeal only

lasted eight hours.

On the personal front, Wilson had three children -- Wilt, who is

now 58; Sherrie, 54; and Randy, 56. He is also survived by eight

grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Wilt said she and her father enjoyed a strong connection, and she

reminisced about following her dad around on his civic obligations.

“He [was] the best father in the world, and we were very close,”

Wilt said. “He always took me along, and I met so many important

people. It was wonderful because I’ve never been shy to meet anybody.

He was just the best.”

Maryalice was especially grateful that her husband was able to

enjoy one last Christmas, especially since that day also happens to

be her birthday.

“It was great,” she said. “We had all the family together. I had a

birthday cake, and they only put one candle on it so we wouldn’t burn

the house down.”

She described her late husband as “friendly, ambitious; a doer.”

Wilson described his life and the development of Costa Mesa in his

book “From Goat Hill to City of the Arts: The History of Costa Mesa.”

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers Costa Mesa. She may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at deirdre.newman@latimes.com.