A man stands on the grassy corner of Virginia Beach Boulevard and Constitution Drive clutching a painter’s pole with a red bucket attached to one end.
In the other hand, he holds a cardboard sign with three lines of handwritten words in all caps: “IN NEED ANYTHING HELPS.”
He’s one of dozens of people who spend their days at busy intersections near malls and shopping centers looking for handouts after Virginia Beach repealed a law that prohibited begging in public spaces in 2018.
When drivers pull up to the intersection and open their car windows, he extends the bucket to accept money because police have warned him about walking into traffic.
“I’m just trying to keep the bills paid,” says the man, who declined to give his last name but goes by “Doc.”
With an uptick in panhandling over the past two years, Councilwoman Sabrina Wooten wondered what, if anything, could be done about it. Over the summer, she asked city staff to study the issue, including how to reduce panhandling and raise awareness about the help that is available to people in need.
“People who are homeless, and those who are struggling and in a poverty status, they are part of our community,” Wooten said at a public briefing on homelessness in the city. “Everybody wants to help. … They just want to know: ‘What’s the right thing to do?'”
The Police Department and the city’s Homeless Outreach Team surveyed about 30 panhandlers recently and found that nearly 40% have a place to live.
“Some of these individuals that we interact with are not, in fact, homeless,” said Police Chief Jim Cervera. “This is how they make a living.”
According to the police survey, conducted in the northwestern part of the city, some panhandlers collect about $20 to $50 or as much as $100 to $200 a day, with females having the best results.
The city’s homeless outreach staff found that homeless panhandlers are using the money to buy food or a hotel room. Some spend it on alcohol or drugs.
Andy Friedman, director of housing and neighborhood preservation, is recommending the city survey businesses in Town Center and the Oceanfront to understand how they’re impacted by panhandling.
He’s also recommending a plan to educate the public about donating to VB Home Now, a nonprofit that partners with the city to provide health services, housing and transportation for people in need.
In 2010, the city installed red donation meters in the resort area for people who wanted to give to the homeless without giving directly to panhandlers. In its first two years, the pilot program raised $10,000 through donations and sponsors, but then interest dwindled.
The city could consider revamping the meters with new messaging and the ability to accept electronic donations to VB Home Now, according to Friedman.
On Thursday, Doc arrived at 6 a.m. near Pembroke Mall with his painter’s pole.
“My first hit this morning was $20,” he said.
He’s been using the money to pay for a hotel room. He recently saved enough to buy a used van.
Now that he has a reliable way to get to work, he’s hopeful he’ll land a job with a renovation contractor soon.
“Ten to 14 more days, I’m done with this,” he said.
Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com
