[1] Through the family's dedicated community leadership, especially that of Henry T. Segerstrom, gifts of valuable land and financial resources, and distinctive, lifelong commitment to the cultural life of the region, Orange County has gained renown.
[2] During WWII, the Segerstrom family farm was converted to the Santa Ana Army Air Base and housed 47,000 personnel.
Segerstrom & Sons, began planning for a major retail development in an unincorporated stretch of land owned by his family located between Santa Ana and Costa Mesa.
Working closely with Mayor Alvin Pinkley, the Segerstroms agreed to lease water rights to Costa Mesa and in exchange, the town would pay fees equal to the municipal taxes, guaranteeing ample revenues to Costa Mesa from what would become South Coast Plaza.
The enormous shopping center is one of the highest grossing in the US, with over 300 stores and around one and a half billion dollars in annual sales.