Santa Ana Not Too Tense Over Stress Rating : City Ranked Among Nation’s Worst in Survey Regarding Ills of Population Growth

Santa Ana, Orange County’s All-America City, rated as one of the worst this week among 184 major U.S. cities surveyed for “urban stress” caused by population growth.

A new study from Zero Population Growth--a Washington-based organization that looked at the stressful effects of crime, pollution, economics, crowding and other ills of urban growth--ranked Santa Ana 11th worst in the nation, with a rating squarely at the “danger” level.

Among Orange County cities, Santa Ana’s 4.0 score (on a scale rating severity from 1 to 5) was the worst, followed by Garden Grove’s 3.6, Anaheim’s 3.3 and Fullerton’s 3.1. Los Angeles scored even worse than Santa Ana, earning 4.3 points, putting it among the nation’s 10 most stressful cities.

“The purpose was to graphically illustrate the kinds of population-related pressures that are on U.S. cities in a way that people could really understand that indeed this country does have a population problem,” said ZPG spokeswoman Nancy Debevoise.

A lot of this fell on doubting ears Friday in Santa Ana and its similarly maligned neighbors. This was a populace still sneering at a widely publicized Rand McNally survey a few months ago that concluded that Pittsburgh was America’s most livable city. And here was a new survey that may have put Santa Ana near the bottom. Who came out No. 1?

Fargo, North Dakota.

“I really can’t talk. I’m too stressed today,” declared Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce President Michael Metzler.

“I guess it depends on what your definition of stressful is,” Metzler said. “I guess one could say that living in Southern California is more stressful than living in North Dakota. . . . It’s difficult for me to take these things too seriously.”

Santa Ana Mayor Daniel E. Griset said the survey “appears to be a general attack on urbanizing areas . . . (and) confirms that the 1950s are over in Orange County.”

“My only other thought is that it may be a conspiracy of people in the psychiatry business to help people identify their need for counseling,” Griset added. “Call it another commercial for call-up-your-psychiatrist.”

Garden Grove Reaction

But Garden Grove Mayor Jonathan Cannon was taking it seriously, reciting a litany of redevelopment projects that he said are moving the city away from its somewhat tattered image and into a new “balanced community” that will offer residents new jobs and recreational opportunities.

Really, he said, Garden Grove already has the ninth largest Toyota dealership in the nation, and it is about to welcome the largest Mervyn’s in Orange County.

“For the first time ever, Garden Grove is taking advantage of the Garden Grove Freeway and the exposure it gives to our city. . . . We’re moving away from being just a bedroom community,” Cannon said. “If those things are perceived as being bad by a zero-growth outfit, then I guess we’re guilty. But I perceive those as being good.”

Anaheim Mayor Don Roth also had some well-chosen words for that “zero-growth outfit,” which advocates voluntary limits on families of two children each.

“What are we going to do, have everybody have a vasectomy after they’ve been married 16 weeks?” Roth demanded. “I don’t know what the value of these kinds of surveys is, but I guess it keeps somebody busy making studies. I just hope they’re not using our tax money to do these things.”

‘Call It Growing Pains’

Santa Ana, upon a nomination by President Ronald Reagan, was designated one of eight All-America Cities for 1982-83, a fact that is prominently displayed on city stationery and water towers.

“In any place where you have a large number of people, you’re going to have stress. Santa Ana is growing: call it growing pains,” suggested James Gelder, a resident of east Santa Ana.

“I think they’re full of baloney,” added Rusty Kennedy, executive director of the Santa Ana-based Orange County Human Relations Commission.

“I don’t even know Fargo, so I won’t bad mouth it, but it seems like their criteria is, where aren’t there people?” Kennedy said. “I thrive (on) and love a diverse population. . . . culturally (and) ethnically, diversity and excitement abound in places like Santa Ana.”

But not everyone, even in officialdom, is quite so ready to dismiss the survey’s findings.

In the Santa Ana Unified School District, which only recently decided to convert five additional schools to year-round status to accommodate an ever-growing crush of students, Supt. Edward Krass said: “We’ve got students on year-round, we have bungalows on campuses, we need to build schools.”

Toll on Teachers, Students

Does that take an emotional toll on teachers and students?

“Certainly,” he said. “Certainly it does.”

Juan Alvarez, 80, still takes daily walks into downtown Santa Ana after 28 years in the city. “I have 28 years living here, and the atmosphere here is bad. There’s a lot of drug dealing, a lot of prostitution, just a lot of crime. . . . They are cleaning up the place a little bit, trying to build new buildings, and it’s looking cleaner. But it’s a difficult place to live.”

Olivia Sanchez is a 19-year-old mother who has lived in the United States for the last two years, most recently in an Anaheim apartment near Disneyland.

“It’s been tough living here,” she said. “The apartments cost a lot, and they’re in terrible conditions. They say they charge a lot because we live close to Disneyland. It costs us $435 per month for a one-bedroom apartment. In Anaheim and Santa Ana, it’s really bad. The police are always coming and going. There’s a lot of prostitution and crime. There’s little work to find.”

Chris and Mary Baldwin moved to Garden Grove from Wisconsin a little more than two years ago for Chris Baldwin’s job. On Sunday, they will be moving to Virginia.

“There’s a lot of congestion here,” Chris explained.

Added Mary: “There’s too many people here, too hectic. You got it here--Garden Grove, Santa Ana, Anaheim--it’s all one big mess.”

STRESS RANKINGS

Pomona 4.5 Los Angeles 4.3 Long Beach 4.0 Santa Ana 4.0 San Bernardino 3.9 Pasadena 3.8 Sacramento 3.6 Fresno 3.6 Garden Grove 3.6 San Jose 3.4 Anaheim 3.3 San Diego 3.2 Riverside 3.1 Fullerton 3.1 San Francisco 3.0 Huntington Beach 2.7 Torrance 2.9 Berkeley 2.5 Concord 2.1

Zero Population Growth used a scale under which a rating of 1 is “Best,” 2 is “Good,” 3 is “Warning,” 4 is “Danger” and 5 is “Red Zone.”