Fredericton to convert old parking meters for charity

The business group Downtown Fredericton Inc. is moving ahead with plans to use old parking meters to collect spare change for the homeless.

​"This gives us the opportunity to feel good if you feel the need to give panhandlers some money — to put it in these charity meters and we'll know exactly that this money is going to be used for good purposes," said Bruce McCormack, general manager.

The meters will probably be installed on King and Queen streets in late May or early June, he said. There will be signs explaining the meters are not for parking fees, but for donations to the Fredericton Community Kitchen and Emergency Shelters "because they have the most impact on downtown."

It's the business group's latest attempt to try to reduce the number of people who ask for money on the street.

In 2012, it asked the city to crack down on enforcement of its anti-panhandling bylaw.

In 2007, Downtown Fredericton Inc. partnered with the John Howard Society to provide vouchers to panhandlers who worked part-time jobs as part of the program, redeemable at downtown stores for necessities.

"Businesses are hearing from their customers every day: 'We're not coming downtown anymore. We feel threatened,'" said McCormack.

"We've had some very, very aggressive panhandlers in our downtown in the last few years and it's really had a negative impact on business," he said.

Other communities in Canada that have installed charity meters have seen a reduction in the number of panhandlers, he said.

"We're not saying this is a fix-all but it's sure going to help out a lot of people in the Fredericton area," he said.