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'Give to many, not just one' | Street signs discouraging panhandling to go up in certain areas of Virginia Beach

After a vote by city council, a year-long pilot program tackling the issue of panhandling in one Virginia Beach district will begin.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Signs in the Centerville area of Virginia Beach will soon go up, discouraging drivers from giving money to panhandlers.

On Tuesday night, the Virginia Beach City Council issued the go-ahead for the initiative led by Councilwoman Sabrina Wooten. The approval means that a pilot study of up to one year will get underway in Wooten's district. 

That said, City Manager Patrick Duhaney is now tasked with identifying public spaces most appropriate to post the signs.

Wooten explained that this is something she has been looking at for years. 

"In talking with the police department and doing some research and looking at other surrounding cities, what I see is a potential health, danger, safety issue...People putting themselves in harm's way to get a dollar," Wooten said.

After some back-and-forth discussions with other council members and concerns about the vagueness of the initial proposal, Wooten motioned to focus the initiative in her district specifically, which covers Centerville.

Signs will include words like "Give to Many, Not Just One," in an effort to discourage drivers from handing out money to panhandlers from their cars.

Some are against the move.

"You cannot prevent them from doing it, so instead you want to put signs up telling us what to do," resident Melissa Lukeson said.

"Personally, I disagree with it because I do donate to people a lot and I do think it's good if you're able to," driver Emma Carter said. "I don't think it necessarily is a safety hazard in a lot of ways, especially when it can be really quick and easy."

The signs are supposed to include messaging that encourages giving instead to local nonprofits and charities that help the homeless, like with a QR code or website link.

"I think that could be just as much of a safety hazard if people are going on their phones while they're driving to get to stuff like that," Carter added. 

Wooten acknowledged the need to tackle other issues, such as addressing homelessness and gaps in resources.

However, Wooten also believes that panhandling is a whole other problem, which requires its own solution. "It's all about evaluating. Does it work? If it's not a good fit, we don't have to move forward with it."

It was not immediately clear Tuesday night whether the pilot study could expand to other areas of Virginia Beach. Although some interest was expressed from the dais, nothing was formally voted on in that regard.

Other cities in Hampton Roads, like Norfolk and Hampton, have adopted initiatives with similar roadside signs.

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