Neighborhood Watch Programs Thrive in Chula Vista

By Rachel Perez

Chula Vista has been ranked as one of the safest cities in The United States, according to a 2022 report from WalletHub. Chula Vista is known for its tightknit communities and strong local police department. A large part of our success, safety wise, are the neighborhood watch programs which bring residents together while promoting safety education.

Chula Vista Police Department Officer Sarah Camacho is the advising officer for all neighborhood watch programs in the city. Under Officer Camacho’s leadership, there are currently 30 active neighborhood watch programs in west and east Chula Vista.

“The purpose of the neighborhood watch programs is to reduce the levels of fear and crime in our neighborhoods,” said Camacho. “We teach residents how to protect themselves, their property and most importantlytheir family.”

Two of the most active neighborhood watch programs in the city are in the Brentwood Mobile Home Park in west Chula Vista and Rolling Hills Ranch in the Eastlake area.

In most of the active neighborhood watch programs around the city, neighbors stay connected to their blocks through alerts, group chats, meetings and social media (such as popular neighborhood apps Nextdoor and Townsquare). Program leaders notice that many residents say the networking apps help reassure the feeling of safety. Camacho says the level of activity each neighborhood watch has is completely up to the residents, and there is no cost to start a group.

“Police educate on what is an emergency and a non-emergency issue,” said Camacho. “One of our goals is to educate citizens about how to approach a variety of situations that may arise.”

Camacho says the Chula Vista Police Department has seen a rise in crime being reported on the app Nextdoor, and while she said this is great for community awareness, she also warned that it decreases the rates of reported incidents with the police department. To be considered active, a neighborhood watch program needs to hold at least one meeting per year. There is no cost to start a neighborhood watch and the time commitment is completely up to the neighborhood.

While most neighborhood watch programs cover individual streets or a couple blocks at most, there was a growing demand to broaden the zones covered in east Chula Vista. The program organically grew and now serves the areas of Rolling Hills Ranch, San Miguel and other parts of Eastlake. Camacho says the police department wants residents to take pride in their neighborhoods, and getting to know your neighbors could potentially be life-saving.

“One time, there was a family who was on vacation in Europe for a couple weeks. They told their neighbors when they would be gone, so they knew to keep an eye on the house,” said Camacho. “The neighbors noticed a moving truck, two men had the garage door open and were taking things out of the house. The neighbors immediately contacted the family to see if this was expected. The family said no, and the police were alerted immediately.”

Examples like this are one of the many benefits of neighborhood watch programs. Each neighborhood watch program requires resident leaders to step up and collaboratively organize the specific program. Grandfathergrandson duo Don and Tyler

Miller are an excellent example of community leadership and have committed much of their time to upkeep the Rolling Hills Ranch neighborhood watch, which has grown to cover about 1,500 homes due to a growing demand for a watch group in the area. This neighborhood watch covers different parts of Rolling Hills Ranch, San Miguel and Eastlake. Rolling Hills Ranch neighborhood watch co-captain Tyler Miller is excited to see how the group grows in the future.

“Being a captain for the neighborhood watch program creates joy for me,” said Miller. “I love doing it and the connections that I have made through helping the community.”

If you would like more information on neighborhood watch programs, please contact Chula Vista Police Department Officer Camacho, (619) 407-3586

Personal

Half Sandwich, select one: Caprese, torpedo, and meatball

Margherita crimini mushrooms, basil, fresh mozzarella

Giana’s

“My husband

I moved back

San Diego after living in Sacramento for 10+ years. Minnie was a dream to work with: attentive, caring, responsive, motivated, honest, professional and trustworthy. She listened as we described our style and location preferences, and always found 3-4 listings that matched what we wanted. It felt like we were her only clients. It’s been almost four years since we bought our house, I can text or email Minnie with a question and she responds quickly.” ~ Sharon M.