After stockpiling thousands of dollars donated to help St. Petersburg’s homeless population, the city says it is putting together a plan to use all of the money over the next several months.

Since 2014, the city has collected money meant for homeless people via parking meters repurposed as change machines.

As of April 23, the city had $9,882 available for use through the Power of Change program, according to a document received through a public records request. That’s because local officials for years largely did nothing with the donated money.

But the city is making plans to use all the money as its distribution and outreach efforts ramp up during the sweltering summer months, when the homeless population is at greater health risk, public information officer Erica Riggins said. The money will go to cooling kits, bus passes, clothing and hygiene items and other needed supplies.

The city’s street outreach team has been canvassing St. Petersburg and communicating directly with people experiencing homelessness to identify their needs and better understand their requests for assistance, Riggins said.

The city in the past six months has spent $1,000 on bus passes and almost $600 on hygiene items and clothes, according to financial records provided by the city. There were multiple months where none of the funds were used.

The St. Petersburg Police Department previously managed the Power of Change funds, but Chief Anthony Holloway announced in August that the city’s Veterans, Homeless and Social Services division would take over. Holloway’s announcement came after news outlets reported that the police department had stockpiled more than $9,000 while rarely using the money to help homeless people.

At a City Council meeting last August, Holloway confirmed that the money went largely unused, but said that the department formed partnerships with the community and nonprofit groups that help homeless people.

Riggins said the Power of Change program is just one source of funding for Veterans, Homeless and Social Services. There are also several larger funding sources that come in the form of federal and state grants to help meet the needs of the homeless population.

St. Petersburg City Council member Richie Floyd said that there’s a lot more work to be done to help the homeless community, but he’s glad that the remaining Power of Change funds are going to be used.

“It’s a good thing that we’re not going to just be sitting on these resources anymore,” Floyd said. “We need to use them in a transparent and efficient manner to do exactly what we told people we were going to do when they donated.”

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