Newport Terrace Is a Landlocked Island Unto Itself

On the map, the Newport Terrace condominium complex is a postage-stamp-size patch of orange surrounded by a sea of purple.

Geographically, it is within Costa Mesa’s boundaries. Officially, it belongs to Newport Beach. To residents, it’s an island unto itself.

“We really have our own kind of unique identity,” said John Sexton, president of the Newport Terrace homeowners’ association. “We’re really in a world of our own.”

Newport Beach snatched the quarter-mile square where the complex sits in a planning move common in the middle of the century. Officials said it was done in part to block Costa Mesa from spreading to the coast and rivaling its southern neighbor with ocean views. But mostly, the idea was to give Newport Beach control over its garbage dump.

So in 1953, Newport Beach annexed a strip of land--in spots as narrow as one foot--that stretched just north of 19th Street to include the city’s landfill. After the landfill closed, the 281-unit Newport Terrace condominium complex was built on top of it in the mid-1970s.

The stranded condos sit more than a mile from any other Newport Beach homes.

To get there, residents have to drive through Costa Mesa streets to the south, east or north. Children who live there attend schools in Costa Mesa. And, as Sexton points out, “if you want to drive to the nearest liquor store, you’ll be at a Costa Mesa liquor store.”

“It doesn’t feel like Newport Beach. It’s laid back, it’s an island,” explained Chanceford Mounce, 52, who has lived in Newport Terrace for 16 years. “It’s got a Newport Beach address, but it doesn’t have the prices Newport Beach has, and it doesn’t have the attitude.”

Indeed, the condominiums run somewhere between the more expensive units in Newport Beach and cheaper homes in Costa Mesa. Two-bedroom units, with about 1,000 square feet, start at about $130,000, while three-bedrooms, as large as 1,450 square feet, cost $185,000.

Residents say the best attraction of the Newport Terrace community is its vast undeveloped surroundings. Next to Talbert Regional Park, the neighborhood also overlooks the Santa Ana River. In the midst of the complex--along with a swimming pool, sauna and Jacuzzi--there is also about 14 acres of park space.

“When we first moved in there were foxes, possums, coyotes and snakes running through the park,” Mounce mused. “We still occasionally have skunks. That makes us feel a little more natural.”

“It’s isolated and it’s quiet,” agreed Evelyn Roy, 74, who used to edit the complex’s newsletter, Terrace Topics. “There’s no traffic, no dust. I like the rural atmosphere.”

Newport Terrace residents said they feel no strong ties to City Hall, but they are not integrated into Costa Mesa either. Most are glad the odd annexation occurred because of their fashionable address.

“I’m sure there are individuals here who have thought about (becoming part of) Costa Mesa, but anytime it’s brought up in public, it’s shot down real quick,” said Mounce, who was president of the homeowners’ association for eight years. “We like Newport Beach. The government leaves us alone and we leave them alone.”