THE LAST WORD:Back to the drawing board

Boy, Costa Mesa these days must feel a bit like the wallflower at Homecoming who can’t find a dance partner and then sees the girl of his dreams waltz off with the star quarterback.

The city not only lost a shot at annexing West Santa Ana Heights last week when it officially joined Newport Beach, but the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission’s decision also means Newport’s new borders could make it easier for Newport to annex the Santa Ana Country Club and land south of Mesa Drive. Costa Mesa officials would like to annex both, but representatives for those areas say they want to be in Newport Beach.

County Supervisor John Moorlach tried to broker what he called a “global solution” that would let Newport and Costa Mesa share the unincorporated county land, but it fell apart in negotiations.

The good news is that West Santa Ana Heights residents finally got their wish after years of fighting to rejoin their neighbors in East Santa Ana Heights who annexed to Newport in 2003.

Let’s hope Moorlach can keep Newport-Mesa officials at the negotiating table and that a compromise can be worked out.