A Mall Rises from Lima Bean Fields
In March 1967, South Coast Plaza opened on ground that had been a working lima bean field. The Segerstrom family, long tied to farming in Costa Mesa, turned the land into a commercial center that was ready for the new suburban growth of Orange County.
The first anchors were May Company, which had debuted in late 1966, and Sears. Both names carried weight at the time, pulling steady traffic to the site.
Victor Gruen Associates shaped the early look of the property. Gruen had built a reputation as an architect of shopping centers, and his design gave the mall its first footprint…