Costa Mesa city officials have approved a plan for a major housing development on the site of the former Fairview Developmental Center, a state hospital campus that closed in 2022. The approved project envisions constructing approximately 2,300 residential units on the 80-acre property, including 920 affordable units targeted toward low-income residents.

The Fairview Developmental Center previously housed more than 2,500 patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities before the state transitioned to community-based group homes and independent living arrangements. The property's reuse has been under consideration for several years as part of statewide efforts to repurpose former institutional land.

Although the city council endorsed the housing proposal last week, a developer has not yet been chosen, and detailed plans regarding the design and layout have yet to be finalized. Given the project's scale, it is expected to consist primarily of apartment buildings and other forms of multiunit housing.

The development plan also includes 35,000 square feet of commercial space intended to accommodate amenities such as retail stores, restaurants, coffee shops, fitness studios, and childcare centers, according to a draft environmental impact report. Additionally, the proposal calls for 25 acres of publicly accessible open space, which would feature parks, plazas, walking and biking trails, recreation centers, and picnic areas.

Earlier in the planning process, the city’s Planning Commission had recommended allowing up to 4,000 residential units on the site. However, the city council opted for a smaller scale, resisting state pressure to maximize density. Despite this concession, Costa Mesa faces significant housing demands, needing to add nearly 11,760 new residential units by 2030 in order to comply with California’s state-mandated housing goals.

The Fairview project represents a critical component of Costa Mesa’s broader strategy to meet these targets while balancing community concerns about density and infrastructure capacity. The city will continue refining the project details and selecting a developer in the coming months as it advances the site’s transformation from a former hospital campus to a mixed-use residential neighborhood.