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Fairview Developmental Center

Fairview Developmental Center is one of five state-operated developmental centers operated by the Department of Developmental Services. Fairview is a multi-service residential facility licensed by the California Department of Health Services to provide acute, skilled, and intermediate care to individuals with developmental disabilities who need 24-hour health care supervision, a structured environment, and a habilitation program not currently available in their home community. Services include training in daily living, vocational, leisure, academic, communication, mobility, socialization, and community skills. Services are provided both on campus and in community settings.

HISTORY:

Fairview Developmental Center is the newest of the state's five developmental centers officially opening on January 5, 1959. It is located in Costa Mesa, California, a city that is the cultural and commercial center of Orange County. Originally occupying 752 acres, Fairview had an initial bed capacity of 2,622 and was intended to house some 4,125 residents. The actual population peaked in 1967 at 2,700 and much of the original land was transferred in 1979 to the city of Costa Mesa. The population on August 27, 2008 was 525. (Population Trends)

Fairview employs a staff of approximately 1,500. The beautiful park-like campus is surrounded on three sides by a 36-hole golf course built on land that was sold to the city. Facilities include a swimming pool, work activity center, auditorium, park, small animal farm, recreational campsite, and library. The climate in Costa Mesa is mild, with ocean breezes making Fairview a very pleasant place to live and work.

PHILOSOPHY:

All people have value as human beings and as members of the human family. People do not lose their inherent value simply because of a disability. The people who live at Fairview have strengths and weaknesses like the rest of us. They need opportunities to grow, express themselves, and succeed. At Fairview we strive to empower the individuals who live here to be more self-reliant and less dependent.

TOURS:

On-site educational tours may be provided for groups of clinical professionals or students in clinical training at the discretion of the Executive Director. Tours for individuals are not available. In order to preserve the privacy and dignity of individuals living at Fairview, general public tours are not provided. To schedule a tour, please call (714) 957-5105.