Could some cold, hard cash help crack down on illegal dumping in Oakland? One city councilmember thinks so and paid $500 to help figure out who recently left a bunch of stuff in one neighborhood.
It all started when photos were shared across neighborhood social media pages showing what appear to be several people illegally dumping large furniture and other items in the street at Courtland Avenue near Redding Street in Maxwell Park. The neighborhood social media pages said they filed a 311 complaint about this but asked community members for additional information.
Councilmember Kevin Jenkins, who represents the area, said seeing those photos struck a nerve for him.
“I was absolutely fed up,” he recalled, noting he saw many people in the comments who felt the same way.
Jenkins then posted a video on social media, offering to pay $500 of his own money to the first person to identify the people in the photos
“Hey Oakland, I need your help. I have a $500 reward. This lady seems to have accidentally left her stuff on Courtland and Redding [Street], and I need to find out who she is,” he said in the post.
In an interview with NBC Bay Area on Sunday, Jenkins said of the post, “I didn’t want to be assumptive, and maybe the person would be willing to get their stuff back.”
“But we have to highlight this issue in the city. We have to make people afraid that they will get caught,” he continued.
Lots of people responded to Jenkins’ post. He said he paid the $500 reward to the first person who offered information that lined up with the people in the photos. Jenkins plans to share that information with the city.
“This is not normal, people should not have to live amongst trash and filth. A lot of people just want basic quality of life things in Oakland,” he continued.
Jenkins and other city leaders are trying different approaches to address illegal dumping, which has been a pervasive issue in “The Town.”
On Saturday, the city revived its Bulky Block Party events, giving residents a free event where they can dispose of unwanted large household items. The city plans to host more of these events on October 24 of this year and January 23 and April 24 of next year.
Earlier this year, the council approved more funding for illegal dumping cleanup and also voted to double fines for illegal dumping to up to $5,000.
Jenkins hopes the public call-outs help, too. After this first try at offering a reward, he thinks he’ll offer up more rewards in the future.