City to use parking meters for the poor

SAN FRANCISCO, May 13 (UPI) -- San Francisco officials said the city is planning to install "homeless" meters to collect change for the poor in an effort to cut down on panhandling.

The meter plan, to be announced in the next few weeks, is intended to reduce the market for panhandling by discouraging people from handing spare change directly to the homeless, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Tuesday.

The newspaper said 10 old parking meters -- painted orange -- will be installed in areas most prone to panhandling. City officials said cash from the meters will be distributed to nonprofit organizations in the city.

Critics argue the plan is a waste of time and will only make life harder for the homeless.

"It's not fair for the government to create this incredible level of poverty and then turn around to the rest of the community and say, 'Harden your hearts and give the money to us,'" Paul Boden, director of the Western Regional Advocacy Project, told the Chronicle.