The OB Rag’s Second Pandemic Era Summer Fundraiser – Here’s 10 Reasons to Support Us

Our Summer Appeal for Donations During the Pandemic – Again!

Keep the Press Local and Free and Healthy

The OB Rag‘s second Pandemic Summer Fundraiser starts today! Who would have known that when we started our 2020 fundraising campaign, we’d be still wearing masks in indoor public spaces. But here we are.

For the last several years, we’ve held one fundraiser a year, in the summer. This week our goal is to reach $2,000 in donations and contributions from our readers and supporters.

We do provide local OB news, a discussion platform that is better than a dozen facebook pages, and keep track of the various crises hitting us. Unlike some other media platforms that were based on advertisements and had to fold during the pandemic, we are still here – because we rely on our readers and supporters.

The online OB Rag is currently in our 15th year of being the online newspaper for Ocean Beach. Please ensure that we can keep going.

Why do we need money to operate? We do pay some of our regular columnists and reporters; we have other bills, like the server bill, rent, and the post office, subscriptions and other minor costs to keep up with the always changing, always unique, always dynamic Ocean Beach village.

How to Support Us

Send us a one-time donation via our PayPal button on the homepage;
Become a regular monthly contributor; via PayPal on the homepage;
Send us a check made out to “OB Rag” to:

OB Rag
PO Box 7012
Ocean Beach, CA 92167

So, help us keep the OB Rag alive and well – send us a donation during this Second Pandemic Summer campaign.

Here’s Ten Reasons to Support the OB Rag:

1. Keeping track of the OB Pier, Sports Arena redevelopment, Navy redevelopment of NAVWAR, Short Term Vacation Rentals: The OB Rag for the last 5 years has been at the forefront of these issues, with reports and analysis of their effects on Ocean Beach, Point Loma, the Midway District and other beach and coastal neighborhoods;
2. Reports on 3 Local Planning Committees and OB Town Council: We provide reports on the meetings (and controversies) of the three planning committees in the Peninsula area – the OB Planning Board, the Peninsula Community Planning Board and the Midway / Pacific Planning Board. We also advertise, advocate for and report on their elections. No other media outlet provides this kind of local coverage. Plus we consistently and regularly report on meetings and activities of the Ocean Beach Town Council.
3. Discussion Platform for local residents: the OB Rag provides a platform for residents and neighbors to discuss local issues and problems, everything from public space encroachment by local restaurants, the OB Pier renovation or removal; redevelopment boondoggles, dockless bikes, controversial “bike lanes,” lapses by government, etc.
4. History of Ocean Beach: OB Rag archives and staff are resources for the history of OB and the area, and help to provide not only historical context but also a source for a community-collective memory. Members of our staff worked on the original OB Rag back in the 1970s and so some of us have been around for a long time.
5. Conscience of the Community: Michael Turko, formerly of the well-known “Turko Files” once said that the OB Rag “is the conscience of OB.” We’ve earned this moniker due to our efforts to hold government’s feet to the fire, to question authority, to ask questions no one else asks. The OB Rag was the news platform that broke the devastating news about the end of the OB Pier’s service life.
6. Keep Track of Development Projects: It’s been our task over the years to keep track of the development projects that come into OB and Point Loma; we help ensure the projects live up to their designs and the law.
7. Business and Merchant News: we are a source of news from the business and merchant community, the comings and goings of businesses, big and small. The OB Rag broke the news about the possible closure and sale of OB Hardware, about Target’s move to the Newport Avenue, and we welcome new storefronts with props para gratis.
8. Restaurant Reviews: we have a fine tradition of publishing reviews of local restaurants and eateries, unequaled anywhere on the Point.
9. Community Calendar: the OB Rag is a source for meeting and event notices, from presentations by the OB Historical Society to forums held by the OBTC or the Planning Board to free film nights at the OB Green Center to book sales by Friends of the OB Library. Plus our “Links” page has connections to all OB groups, organizations, and all the OB-oriented facebook pages and many Point Loma groups.
10. OB Rag Is Active in the Village; the OB Rag has not just been a media platform, we’ve also been advocates and active in improving the community. The OB Rag broke the news about the pier, suggested the bench in front of the OB Library and the “OB Shelf” inside; we convinced the new owners of the hostel not to repaint the exterior; we’ve lobbied for new infrastructure, like improvements to the OB Library, for a new lifeguard stations and restrooms; we’ve helped to save Torrey Pines, the OB Library, the OB firepits – just for starters.

If you need more reasons, see this.