Verde with Envy
Thursday, 23 October 2003
Brian Martinez
The Current (The Orange County Register)
pages 3 & 6
The only way Susan Baker is going to leave Mesa Verde is in a casket.
Baker grew up in the house her father purchased while its foundation was being poured in 1963. She married a fellow-Estancia High graduate and moved away, but returned to the home 13 years later with her own family.
Baker, like many Mesa Verde residents, likes the big back yards, camaraderie of neighbors and quietness of the community.
"The only thing I'm worried about is this article, because I don't want people to learn about our secluded little area," she said, jokingly.
Residents of Mesa Verde - a neighborhood of 3,000 homes tucked away in the Costa Mesa's northwest corner - say people stay, return or move in to the neighborhood because of it's cozy, hometown feel.
The Ashendorf family moved to Mesa Verde from Newport Beach one year ago so they wouldn't have to listen to airplanes taking off over their heads, and so they would no longer have to pay a mortgage.
"It has many of the joys of the old bungalow style of Orange County, just like in Santa Ana or Orange, but with enough isolation to keep it comfortable," Dennis Ashendorf said.
"It's a great place to raise a family," he said.
Two Mesa Verde signs were recently posted, one on Gisler Avenue coming from Harbor Boulevard and the other on Placentia Avenue coming from Estancia High School, said Darnell Wyrick, president of Mesa Verde Community, Inc. homeowner's association. The signs give a quick historical survey of the area, beginning with the Indian village of Lukup in 1,500 B.C.
A third, sign, to be posted at Adams Avenue and Albatross Drive, is currently being built, Wyrick said.
Neighbors often walk out of their homes and talk in the middle of the street, residents said. A common place to run into people is the Home Depot on Harbor Boulevard or the Starbucks Coffee on the Mesa Verde Loop.
Fourth of July parties are Mesa Verde's hallmark.
"If you drive around, it is an incredible feeling to be in that moment," Ashendorf said.
At a recent Estancia High School 30-year reunion, Baker said she ran into 20 people who still lived in their family's original homes.
"I appreciate Mesa Verde so much more after moving away," she said.
Dennis, 46
Math and Science teacher at Back Bay High School in Costa Mesa.
Graduated from Stanford University, where he studied science.
In his former career, he was an operations manager and engineer for an electronics company. Enjoys web programming, tennis and reading.
Charlene, 53
Director of Development for Tustin-based Laurel House, a coed crisis shelter for teens.
Vice-president for the Mesa Verde Community, Inc. On the Board of Directors for Leadership Tomorrow. Vice-president of the Costa Mesa Cultural Arts Commission. Enjoys tennis, watching professional baseball and hockey, and making crafts.
Jonathan Turco, 19
Sophomore at University of Southern California. He lives off-campus at Abbey Road and said that he loves college life and his fraternity, Zeta Beta Tau. Enjoys sleeping in, listening to music and hanging out at the beach.
Coby, 11
Sixth-grader at Eastbluff Elementary School. His interests in life are bike riding with hs dad and living, breathing and studying about cars. He's the patrol leader of the Nighthawks of Troop 746 in Newport Beach.