San Clemente first came to national attention in 1970, when then-President Richard M. Nixon bought Casa Pacifica and set up the Western White House there. Nixon sold the property in 1979, but curious visitors to the town still want a glimpse of the ocean-bluff estate.

Since Nixon's time, San Clemente, the southernmost coastal city in Orange County, has grown into a community of many attractions.

Right now, it's somewhere between quiet surfers' paradise and busy tourists' haven. Like other Southern California beach cities, San Clemente, population 42,000, grew up during the 1970s and 1980s. In recent years, slow-growthers have dueled business boosters, who would like to see larger, faster development and a more concerted effort to attract tourists with new downtown shops, restaurants and hotels.

Even with its growth, San Clemente has a lot to offer, according to those who live there. San Clemente's home prices may seem high, compared with the rest of the country, but they are modest for coastal Southern California.

"We're the lowest-priced beach city on the coast, except Oceanside," said Byron Marshall, a co-owner of San Clemente Real Estate. Now is an especially opportune time to buy, according to Marshall, because prices are off 10% to 15%, even more for the most expensive homes.

"We have single-family homes all the way from $150,000 to several million," Marshall said. "Several of the townhouse developments would be the entry level. They start around $92,000. You can get ocean-view townhouses starting around $200,000."

In the older southwest portion of the city, beach houses start about $250,000. The closer you get to the beach, the higher the price. Homes within a few hundred yards of the sand start about $400,000.

Permanent residents of San Clemente can feel pinched for space on weekends, when visitors pack wide sidewalks along Avenida Del Mar, the main downtown street.

But San Clemente has not yet become a total tourist trap. Surfers still love the place. Many of them grew up in San Clemente and stayed on to start surf-related businesses such as Astrodeck, Stewart Surfboards, B.C. Surfboards, Rip Curl USA and Rainbow Sandals.

Local surfer Brian Clark owns the Beach Club, a surfwear and accessories shop in downtown San Clemente.

Clark, who has lived in San Clemente since 1964, said contemporary San Clemente is a different place than the old one Clark remembers. But he still likes it.