Costa Mesa is a city located in Orange County, California. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 108,724. 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 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