The Los Mares neighborhood is located in North San Clemente and is a pocket area defined by the streets Calle Campana and Calle Canasta as well as the numbering of Camino Los Mares across Calle Canasta. . The Interstate 5 borders the area on the West and the Fire Station, SDG&E, and Saddleback Memorial Medical Center to the North. The neighborhood encompasses 44 four-plex properties with 176 apartments, which are individually owned but are primarily rentals. The neighborhood is a clear example of multi-family housing that was built in the early 1970’s when homeowner’s associations weren’t required, nor other public benefits such as recreation areas, neighborhood lighting, slope landscaping and fencing. The four-plexes are primarily owned by absentee landlords who have little incentive to keep the properties maintained because the demand for family rental units is great in the city (one fourth of the units are 3 bedroom/2 bath single story apartments). The neighborhood lacks community green space and there are no city parks within walking distance, therefore, many young children play in the alleys and cul-de-sacs after school.
Los Mares is within the gang injunction area where a local gang has been highly active in the past few years. Los Mares has been a challenging neighborhood in many ways but many efforts have taken place to revitalize the neighborhood through neighborhood clean-ups, candle light vigil, Las Posadas annual event, and services provided to parents and youth by the City of San Clemente, organizations and local police department.