Aaron Null and OB Street Stewards Rake Up Success
By Andrea Lopez-Villafaña / San Diego Union-Tribune / Feb. 14, 2020
A volunteer street cleaning group that started with one Ocean Beach man and a Facebook page, now has about 400 resident volunteers signing up as “street stewards,” cleaning streets in their community every week.
The movement, which began in Ocean Beach and Pacific Beach last year, recently spread into North Park, where nearly 50 residents have each committed to cleaning up at least one street, often during their daily walks around the neighborhood.
Founder Aaron Null, who has lived in Ocean Beach for 10 years, said he noticed neighbors growing increasingly frustrated about trash in comments posted on an Ocean Beach Facebook page. Although some comments were negative, he said, people’s frustration also told him that they were eager to do something. He started the group in Ocean Beach and it went from a handful of volunteers to dozens of interested residents in a matter of weeks.
“This is something that people can do on their own; it’s super low barrier of entry,” Null said. “A lot of people don’t want to meet in a group; they would rather go on their own while they are walking their dog.” Null believes that the group’s simplicity has attracted many residents to join.
Each community has its own Facebook group, and residents can post or message the page to adopt a block. Residents who volunteer are asked to pick up trash at least once a week.
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