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Mesa Santa Barbara Neighborhood
The perfect combination - in town affordable beach living!
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Quality of Life
Mesa's summer temperature is 10-12 degrees cooler than downtown and winter temperatures are 10-12 degrees warmer due to the influence of the Pacific Ocean.
The beaches located below cliffs - hence the mesa designation - are public up to the hi tide line and fantastic for sunsets.
Mesa is residential, upscale in parts. It boasts a downtown where, in addition to two grocery stores, two drug stores, and a bank, there are restaurants, coffee shops, DVD stores, bookstores, and bars. In fact, the cross roads of the Mesa has everything except a movie theatre, and a hardware store.
Wander West Beach Boardwalk, which will take you along the beach to Stearn's Wharf for ice cream, amazing views and on to Cabrillo Bike Path. Eventually you will reach The Lagoon - officially called Andree Clark Bird Refuge - more than enough reason for your journey.
Today about 12,000 people live on the Mesa on about 3,900 parcels on 1,900 acres, a much lower density than the Downtown, Eastside or Westside. More than two-thirds of the people live in their own single-family homes making the home ownership rate one of the highest in city. Three elementary schools, McKinley (1932), Washington (1954) and Monroe (1958) serve the many families and children of the Mesa.
There are three Mesa neighborhood areas;
East Mesa and West Mesa with predominately single-family residences and Alta Mesa with rolling to steep hills and much of its land committed to public use.
Established in 1909, Santa Barbara City College "is a comprehensive community college serving the south coast of Santa Barbara County. It is renowned as one of the leading two-year community college in California - and the nation." SBCC has the distinction of ranking #1 for annual transfers to UCSB! Mesa History
"Mesa" means "table" in Spanish and is a common term in California and the Southwest. It is appropriately applied to the flat bench of land extending from Arroyo Burro Beach near Hope Ranch to the bluffs above Santa Barbara City College.
6000-year old Indian village remains have been excavated at SBCC making the Mesa one of the oldest historical sites in Santa Barbara. Paradoxically it is one of the youngest residential districts.
Fertile soil and moist air made the Mesa prime agricultural land. Farms ranged from 80 to hundreds of acres. Because of their success, farmers didn't want to break up their holdings for home sites. Thus Mesa did not urbanize in the 1880's and '90's as did other areas.
Downtown and Montecito were astride the routes to north and south that bypassed the Mesa completely. Travel was easy to downtown, but one had to take the long way around along a path that roughly follows today's Cliff Drive. This surely slowed down development.
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Homes for Sale in Mesa
Looking for a new home in the Mesa area?
Mesa is one of Santa Barbara's most affordable beach front areas and a world-class destination.
If you're looking for a new home in the Mesa area, look no further. Our expert Mesa buyer agents will help you find exactly what you're looking for.
Mesa Parks
Mesa is blessed with several wonderful parks and natural places. Difficult access kept nearly 2 miles of coastal plain isolated. Steep 40 to 80 foot bluffs protect the short beach. Above the bluffs, level land slopes gently upward to meet hills that are just high enough to discourage climbing.
Prime ocean frontage along old Bluff Drive was left vacant, growing into a tangle of weeds and vines as developers dream of restaurants and hotels languished without city approval.
In 1967, the voters approved a one million dollar bond to purchase the 15 acres between Shoreline Drive and the beach, to create Shoreline Park, considered by many to be the finest park in Santa Barbara.
In 1957, Prescott Ray donated his hilltop home on Kenwood Road, where Indians and Spanish had kept their sentinel guard, to the city for a park. Only one and a half acres, Hilda Ray Park, as it is known, has a breathtaking view of the city and is often used for weddings, offering an amazing Santa Barbara scenery backdrop for photographs.
Elings Park is "a park built by the community for the community". As the largest and most diverse park in the Santa Barbara area it boasts 230 acres, 135 of which are undeveloped, lighted fields, hiking trails, playgrounds, barbeques and group picnic areas. With wonderful views of the ocean and the city, baseball diamonds, tennis courts, an amphitheatre and hang/para-gliding is a destination in it's own right.
La Mesa Park is a shady green refuge, huge lawn, BBQs, playgound, eucalyptus grove, benches overlooking the water and ocean breezes. It can be 96 degrees somewhere else in Santa Barbara and 75 degrees in La Mesa.
Take the pedestrian bridge leading out of La Mesa Park, cross over to a Mesa neighborhood and follow along Camino de la Luz, turn left and follow Edgewater Way along to reach Mesa Steps. Experience the beautiful view from the top of these steep steps leading down to a ribbon beach.
Less well known, The 1000 Steps were originally constructed in 1923 at the End of Santa Cruz Boulevard Coastal giving access to the beach. Fear not - although it looks like 1000 it is only 227 steps down, and up.
Bring yourself and a loved one and enjoy the solitude and the sand.
Douglas Preserve is doggy heaven. Dogs can run free on the circular trail that follows the cliff over looking Hendry's Beach with that classic California beach look, tall palms, wonderful cliffs, beach caves, piles of kelp and lots of driftwood. Keep walking - the beach becomes more secluded as you go.
For many years the people of Santa Barbara have had the foresight to reserve the ocean front for public use and local residents are now enjoying the benefits of such foresight.
Since 1928, the La Mesa Improvement Association has worked with Mesa's residents to preserve scenic and recreational areas, adding to our heritage and protecting the Mesa lifestyle - one of the most envied in the South Coast.
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