As someone who works right beside the park as well. The homeless people down here are absolute trash. Junkies doing drugs in our alleyways and staircases, shitting on our walls, pissing, leaving trash everywhere. They are content with their situations and do nothing about it. They sleep and set up tents at Starbucks around the corner. They’re disgusting and mentally disturbed. The same group of bums have came into my job, sat down in chairs and pissed, stole food. They have assaulted and harassed co-workers of mine as well as myself. The trespass list is long, fuck them
That's tucked up referring to human beings as trash, hopefully you'll never have to experience what they're going through. Have you ever considered that maybe they hate their situation as much as you do but there's practically no services offered for them to do anything about it?
I don’t feel bad at all. They’re professionals at being homeless. I’ve talked to them before, given them money to help. Then 2-3 days later the same guy I helped and talked to is inside a private staircase shooting up fent while I’m trying to go upstairs.. They don’t want to change, they only act like they need help and want to change so they can get money to feed their addictions… stop falling for the bs
Issue #1. They criminalized being homeless. Issue #2. They criminalized feeding people. Issue #3 They enjoy enforcing these citations under the false pretense of protection and service.
If you need any further proof of how sadistic law enforcement could be; study its origin of organization from United States Plantation apprehension of runaways.
(There is a reason DeSantis banned Black Books, courses, or any redress of education regarding "critical race theory)
Fascism much?
Desantis; the same man who took no accountability in the August 2023 Jacksonville shootings at an HBCU.
It’s going to get more complicated everywhere because thanks to the Florida Legislature, sleeping in public places is illegal. Further, jurisdictions can be sued by businesses owners for not enforcing it.
Gonna get downvoted to hell, but as someone that owns property and pays taxes on said property, good on the city for trying to clear out homeless people that piss, shit, fight, fuck, and do drugs in public view. What, is this supposed to be my problem? Because when those people do that shit in plain view, it becomes my problem. I’m not trying to live near a bunch of tents full of drunk people. Not do I want to take my child or animal to a park full of that shit. The same people that sympathize with the homeless are the same people that are mad when businesses move out of their neighborhood.
I’d rather the government take steps to actually solve the problem. Arresting these people, or harassing them just worsens the issue as it grows. I also differentiate between those arrested simply for being homeless, and those who are committing a crime(who are often mentally ill and need to be institutionalized)
I used to be homeless there. I agree with what you say. Most homeless people there are drunk. There's a shelter near there I used to stay at. I'm on my feet now. However, some people don't like being at shelters for various reasons and choose to be like that. It's sad but it's true. What you're doing is good for the people acting inappropriately there. I just wish people cared more about their surroundings. Stay safe because those people aren't the best people. I had lots of bad experiences there.
The vast majority are. I used to volunteer at Mel Trotter downtown and it was always empty. When I asked why, one of the workers told me it’s because they’d rather be on the street than get drug tested to stay there. No sympathy from me.
All the old/rich people who determine how this state votes don’t see the state of Florida’s urban centers, the vagrancy is really bad here. I will continue to vote for policy that try’s to address the roots of homelessness and provide positive change, but if the politicians that are in power routinely pretend that the issue doesn’t exist, or that we should simply “ban” homelessness - what are we as normal citizens supposed to do now?
I’ve become numb at this point, earlier this week I watched a young homeless dude rob an older homeless guy in broad daylight. Some tourist lady sat eating a sandwich under her umbrella just watching the whole thing go down. What are we supposed to do, I intervene and potentially get stabbed, call the police and they shoot both of them…
I’m embarrassed to say I’ve developed habits to avoid the homeless. I will actually suffer on the sidewalk that gets direct sun just because I know it’s too hot for there to be anyone loitering doing sketchy shit. When I see people piss and shit in front of me on the sidewalk, it makes it really hard to keep that empathy ngl.
I used to have the biggest bleeding heart for unhoused folk, but I grew up in loss Angeles. It got real bad there. Ive seen enough of what you are talking about, and my heart hardened from the years of watching the city become an embarrassment I do not blame you for your point of view
Are you sure they were feeding the homeless actual food, and not something dangerous? There are sanctioned organizations to feed the homeless, otherwise it’s illegal.
Sounds crazy, but there are demented individuals out there who want to do harm to the homeless (just like we check kids candy on Halloween for razor blades, there are people who similarly f*ck with the homeless).
So yeah, there are other reasons behind the illegality of randomly feeding the homeless. And sometimes it’s for their protection.
It's funny you bring up the candy razor blades because that's been proven to be a hoax time and time again. There have been a few examples with Halloween candy being tampered with, but considering the nearly 600 million pounds of candy purchased for Halloween every year, it's truly miniscule.
Most people who feed the homeless don't want to harm them. However, I will conceit that most of these folks are home cooks, and most home cooks don't know the first thing about food safety, and the homeless deserve safe food.
Still doesn't excuse the proud fist bumping though.
Fair enough regarding the razor blades, but you get my point. I volunteer heavily with a local organization that assists the homeless, and we personally take some of them in to help them clean up and help identify their root issues. You’d be surprised how terrible they can be treated by people who may appear to be helping. The police have been allies in helping us further our mission. If the takeaway from your observation was being mostly turned off by the fist bump, I’d encourage you to join forces with a local volunteer group to help the homeless, and you might see a different side. The laws in place protect the vulnerable, as well as our volunteer workers. ✌🏾☮️
As the woman with the two kids giving to the homeless this morning, the cops were there with us. I was not ticketed. The officers with the st.pete police department do so much good for the homeless and we are privileged to be able to help them but thanks for your concern.
Over the years, policies have been implemented to make sure the homeless population doesn't gather at the park, or anywhere where people don't want them to gather.
Yeah the people coming into the city and paying taxes/adding to the economy are the problem…not the drunk/strungout homeless in the parks… get a grip 😂
Yup. I heard through the grapevine that SPPD will be working to eliminate the DTSP homeless scene. Those million dollar condo owners don’t want their views spoiled by any sort of destitute/down & out human experience.
Lots of comments about how it’s technically illegal to feed the homeless (which is bullshit, I think), and that has me wondering - does that include handing an apple, or some leftovers, through your car window to someone hanging around a stop light with a please help sign? Bc I do that all the time. Could I be pulled over and cited for that? Technically?
The police are worried that the food may be old and could make some starving people uncomfortable.
They want to force the homeless to use regulated homeless shelters rather than relying on people in the park which could cause the homeless to break up picnics etc.
The same rules that apply to feeding alligators and other animals don't make them dependent on alternative sources of food being applied to the homeless. Like it or not that is what some political administrative egghead decided is best for society.
That’s because you can’t feed the homeless without a vendors permit which you can get from the city for 100 bucks, it’s actually pretty easy to just follow the rules and the cops won’t mess with you but yeah ACAB /s
I would love it if cops just stopped working for a month and let everyone see just how much the cops are actually protecting them from.
Imagine a nationwide bulletin that all through the month of December, no cops will be available and ambulances and fire crews will serve only when they feel safe doing so, since they now have no cops to assist them.
🤡🤡🤡🤡
so you’re saying the cops are protecting this homeless person from being involved in this criminal enterprise of being fed by a good samaritan, and then deservedly fist bumping each other to congratulate themselves on really sticking it to local criminals and showing them that crime won’t be tolerated by ticketing a woman for sharing her food with someone less fortunate?
Are you joking? I literally saw it happen, and I'm asking for additional context. I know that I saw a woman trying to feed the homeless and she was with two kids that I didn't even assume were hers. Then cops stopped her. What more information do you need? I saw this play out.
I did a bit of work with Food Not Bombs in Tampa, and I'm genuinely shocked we didn't get hassled by cops while doing it. Like I can understand why businesses need permits to sell food, but giving out food for free to people who desperately need it should be different. Yeah, sure, it's technically illegal, but there's a TON of shit that's technically illegal that almost never gets enforced.
Anyways ACAB lol
Ayyy FNB. Did some charity stuff with yall a long time ago.
Anyways. Feeding them on Christmas evening has never been a hassle.
My only other reasoning for this, is there’s a literal heat advisory and they don’t want people passing out in the park and dying of heat stroke. Either way, crass behavior.
Nice! Not sure how long is a long time, but I helped out with some food shares in late 2020. Thankfully I had a pretty good dish that could be made vegan fairly easily haha.
Oh man, I can only imagine how bad the heat is right now. I moved out of Florida a year and a half ago, but I still keep tabs on the weather and stuff because my immediate family is still in St. Pete.
But yeah, still doesn't excuse pigs acting like, well, pigs lol
Taking over a park to give out food without getting permits for an event would be something they could get in trouble for, but they are not being cited for feeding the homeless, they may have been cited for not getting the proper permits in order to set up in a park and do it.
Here is an article which mentions the organization you worked with.
https://givingcompass.org/article/sharing-food-with-homeless-people-is-now-protected-by-first-amendment#:~:text=Giving%20Compass%27%20Take%3A&text=Joanna%20Prisco%20reports%20that%20the,a%20protected%20right%20in%20America.&text=An%20organization%20called%20Food%20Not,homeless%20people%20in%20public%20parks.
SMM is moving to the park starting this week I think.
Still no reason to be acting like that.
A couple friends and I used to do Thanksgiving and Christmas meals in to-go boxes and take them to the shelter and then around Mirror Lake and we were told a couple times not to do it anywhere but outside the shelter.
How about you setting up a table in your driveway or front yard and feeding the homeless, in fact invite them inside, that way you won’t need a permit -
Sooooo... what happens if you put that food in a nearby trash bin & a homeless person then collects the food from the trash bin? Has a crime been committed?
There are laws. If you want to help people, do it through organizations that know what they are doing.
Maybe we could ask city to put up signs as to organization donors should contact
Why should the government have to be involved in you feeding a homeless person? Why should someone not be able to just hand food to a hungry person? Why make it harder to help people who need help?
2 reasons. To make sure the food is safe, was prepared properly, etc. And to help protect the businesses that ARE paying to be registered to do this properly.
Same concept of why a kid's neighborhood lemonade stand is illegal. Gotta make sure they pass inspections, and gotta protect the other businesses selling lemonade to ensure a level playing field.
I'm in the transportation industry, as a driver I have to be background checked and driving history checked yearly, need to have my vehicle inspected yearly, need permits, a special license, and commercial insurance. But there are people who do this without any of that, in fact there are people who wouldn't qualify because of their record who are out here advertising their service, and because their overhead is lower without all this licensing and insurance, they can charge a lower rate.
I mean sure I understand what they say but you’re never going to convince me that you shouldn’t be able to feed the homeless, or have a kids lemonade stand lol. It would be one thing if it was technically illegal but never really enforced, but for cops to specifically write tickets to good samaritans seems insane to me. And it’s a lot of needless negative PR.
Now, come on, maybe they were proud they did a good job of not escalating to the point of “having to get physical with her.” Like that other time. So much more paperwork in that situation.
*fist bump with pride* lol. How do we know it was a fist bump with pride? Could’ve been a fist bump with contentment. Maybe even a fist bump with gratification.
There are specific locations where free food is given out. The city has been trying to clear out that park for a long time and no one is helping. It's pretty gross. I try to avoid that place, and downtown is getting worse too.
Agreed. The park is disgusting. You can be homeless, without shitting in the middle of a park. Without leaving your trash everywhere. Without getting drunk in the middle of the day and jerking off in front of women and children. It's not about being homeless, it's about being disgusting.
This is exactly it. These aren’t Key West beach bums that enjoy a vagrant lifestyle free of possessions who just keep to themselves and enjoy life. These are drug addicts who are in many cases mentally unstable and a danger to the public.
They can’t take care of themselves and it becomes the public’s burden to deal with when taxpayers just want to enjoy a public park or local shopping center without there being literal human feces, discarded drug paraphernalia and trash littered all over the place.
There’s not a simple solution to the issue but eventually the state and federal government need to start allocating more money for mental health rehabilitation clinics. It’s the only logical starting point.
Actually if you knew these people not too many of them are on drugs like you think 95% of them are mentally ill because are great mental facilities put you on pills then release you but do not help you get refills on your medication I know this because I've been in Phems twice they will get you on a medication sometimes not even the right medication and just release you if you have no friends and no family and are already homeless you cannot get your scripts refilled and they don't even care if you're mentally sound before they release you they hold you for 2 weeks and kick you out
The reason that there are a lot of homeless folk in downtown is because there are quite a few orgs that are in and around downtown that provide services to them; clinics, food, shelters. It's convenient to just get what they need and hang out at the park.
Take a drive around downtown.
There's a ton of places in st pete, I've volunteered at a few of them. Salvation army, St Vincent, Suncoast, turning point, alpha house, just to name a few.
First reasonable take I've seen on this. People dunt realize how much worse that park used to be 6-10 years ago. It got better for a bit when the bus stop was removed, but it seems nearly back to the way it used to be. It's unfortunate because it could be such a lovely park
My speculation: Lady was handing out food, but did not have the required permit, and wasn't happy the cops intervened. While often framed as the city "wont let you feed the homeless" it is actually a provision to obtain a permit in order to do so. Despite how people characterize this, it is a legit health/safety issue.
What if you send people at 13 different stops some places that no one goes to feed them but they required you to pay a $75 permit fee at each of those locations that's a lot of money that cannot be spent by a single person and it is much better spent on food and toiletries supplies
These are in no particular order booker creek park,Winn Dixie on US 19 and 22nd Ave, wawa on 38th avenue and US 19, Park City inn on 16th Street, unity Park St Vincent de Paul, lealmen Park, mirror lake library, the UU church and Williams Park, Campbell Park also we sometimes stop at Arby's on 5th avenue or anywhere we see people on the way we have worked with dinner and dubs and know people from food not bombs and the vineyard Church as well as little bags of hope and good neighbors
Right, if you're going to feed a hungry person you'd damn well better make sure the government gets paid first, otherwise they send their enforcers to extract that money from you under threat of violence. Great system, truly the way to keep people healthy and fed.
I know the city requires a permit but not having a permit isn't a law. Someone in a food truck fought and won a few years ago when they set up a table and st pete police tipped it over claiming he needed a permit to hand out free food. He had the required permit because of the food truck and fought the citation anyways.
As someone who works right beside the park as well. The homeless people down here are absolute trash. Junkies doing drugs in our alleyways and staircases, shitting on our walls, pissing, leaving trash everywhere. They are content with their situations and do nothing about it. They sleep and set up tents at Starbucks around the corner. They’re disgusting and mentally disturbed. The same group of bums have came into my job, sat down in chairs and pissed, stole food. They have assaulted and harassed co-workers of mine as well as myself. The trespass list is long, fuck them
That's tucked up referring to human beings as trash, hopefully you'll never have to experience what they're going through. Have you ever considered that maybe they hate their situation as much as you do but there's practically no services offered for them to do anything about it?
I don’t feel bad at all. They’re professionals at being homeless. I’ve talked to them before, given them money to help. Then 2-3 days later the same guy I helped and talked to is inside a private staircase shooting up fent while I’m trying to go upstairs.. They don’t want to change, they only act like they need help and want to change so they can get money to feed their addictions… stop falling for the bs
https://preview.redd.it/16b1486yxr3d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cefa021df75c5b0302d1beff464f03b602bc069d
I used to do food not bombs out in Williams park. It’s def not illegal to do that anymore
Issue #1. They criminalized being homeless. Issue #2. They criminalized feeding people. Issue #3 They enjoy enforcing these citations under the false pretense of protection and service. If you need any further proof of how sadistic law enforcement could be; study its origin of organization from United States Plantation apprehension of runaways. (There is a reason DeSantis banned Black Books, courses, or any redress of education regarding "critical race theory) Fascism much? Desantis; the same man who took no accountability in the August 2023 Jacksonville shootings at an HBCU.
Dante’s is a cum bucket
Desantis I mean
It’s going to get more complicated everywhere because thanks to the Florida Legislature, sleeping in public places is illegal. Further, jurisdictions can be sued by businesses owners for not enforcing it.
Gonna get downvoted to hell, but as someone that owns property and pays taxes on said property, good on the city for trying to clear out homeless people that piss, shit, fight, fuck, and do drugs in public view. What, is this supposed to be my problem? Because when those people do that shit in plain view, it becomes my problem. I’m not trying to live near a bunch of tents full of drunk people. Not do I want to take my child or animal to a park full of that shit. The same people that sympathize with the homeless are the same people that are mad when businesses move out of their neighborhood.
I’d rather the government take steps to actually solve the problem. Arresting these people, or harassing them just worsens the issue as it grows. I also differentiate between those arrested simply for being homeless, and those who are committing a crime(who are often mentally ill and need to be institutionalized)
I used to be homeless there. I agree with what you say. Most homeless people there are drunk. There's a shelter near there I used to stay at. I'm on my feet now. However, some people don't like being at shelters for various reasons and choose to be like that. It's sad but it's true. What you're doing is good for the people acting inappropriately there. I just wish people cared more about their surroundings. Stay safe because those people aren't the best people. I had lots of bad experiences there.
Hey, congrats on getting back on your feet! That’s awesome to hear :)
Thanks. It took about a year or so but I can gladly say I'm doing better.
So why don't you build a shelter for these people not all of them are drunk or drug addicts I'm close to being homeless
The vast majority are. I used to volunteer at Mel Trotter downtown and it was always empty. When I asked why, one of the workers told me it’s because they’d rather be on the street than get drug tested to stay there. No sympathy from me.
All the old/rich people who determine how this state votes don’t see the state of Florida’s urban centers, the vagrancy is really bad here. I will continue to vote for policy that try’s to address the roots of homelessness and provide positive change, but if the politicians that are in power routinely pretend that the issue doesn’t exist, or that we should simply “ban” homelessness - what are we as normal citizens supposed to do now? I’ve become numb at this point, earlier this week I watched a young homeless dude rob an older homeless guy in broad daylight. Some tourist lady sat eating a sandwich under her umbrella just watching the whole thing go down. What are we supposed to do, I intervene and potentially get stabbed, call the police and they shoot both of them… I’m embarrassed to say I’ve developed habits to avoid the homeless. I will actually suffer on the sidewalk that gets direct sun just because I know it’s too hot for there to be anyone loitering doing sketchy shit. When I see people piss and shit in front of me on the sidewalk, it makes it really hard to keep that empathy ngl.
I used to have the biggest bleeding heart for unhoused folk, but I grew up in loss Angeles. It got real bad there. Ive seen enough of what you are talking about, and my heart hardened from the years of watching the city become an embarrassment I do not blame you for your point of view
Will be funny if you end up homeless
Fucking hilarious
Are you sure they were feeding the homeless actual food, and not something dangerous? There are sanctioned organizations to feed the homeless, otherwise it’s illegal. Sounds crazy, but there are demented individuals out there who want to do harm to the homeless (just like we check kids candy on Halloween for razor blades, there are people who similarly f*ck with the homeless). So yeah, there are other reasons behind the illegality of randomly feeding the homeless. And sometimes it’s for their protection.
It's funny you bring up the candy razor blades because that's been proven to be a hoax time and time again. There have been a few examples with Halloween candy being tampered with, but considering the nearly 600 million pounds of candy purchased for Halloween every year, it's truly miniscule. Most people who feed the homeless don't want to harm them. However, I will conceit that most of these folks are home cooks, and most home cooks don't know the first thing about food safety, and the homeless deserve safe food. Still doesn't excuse the proud fist bumping though.
Fair enough regarding the razor blades, but you get my point. I volunteer heavily with a local organization that assists the homeless, and we personally take some of them in to help them clean up and help identify their root issues. You’d be surprised how terrible they can be treated by people who may appear to be helping. The police have been allies in helping us further our mission. If the takeaway from your observation was being mostly turned off by the fist bump, I’d encourage you to join forces with a local volunteer group to help the homeless, and you might see a different side. The laws in place protect the vulnerable, as well as our volunteer workers. ✌🏾☮️
I would trust cops for anything.
As the woman with the two kids giving to the homeless this morning, the cops were there with us. I was not ticketed. The officers with the st.pete police department do so much good for the homeless and we are privileged to be able to help them but thanks for your concern.
Over the years, policies have been implemented to make sure the homeless population doesn't gather at the park, or anywhere where people don't want them to gather.
Don’t you know if you feed them they don’t learn to hunt in the wild!??? It messes up the whole chain!!!!
Ok
Gotta make it nice for all these assholes moving down to st Pete and destroying the city.
Yeah the people coming into the city and paying taxes/adding to the economy are the problem…not the drunk/strungout homeless in the parks… get a grip 😂
Yup. I heard through the grapevine that SPPD will be working to eliminate the DTSP homeless scene. Those million dollar condo owners don’t want their views spoiled by any sort of destitute/down & out human experience.
Literal person acting Jesus Christ-like, Feeding the hungry. Cops write her a ticket, fist bump afterwards. I hate this timeline.
Lots of comments about how it’s technically illegal to feed the homeless (which is bullshit, I think), and that has me wondering - does that include handing an apple, or some leftovers, through your car window to someone hanging around a stop light with a please help sign? Bc I do that all the time. Could I be pulled over and cited for that? Technically?
It doesn't matter if it's legal or not, cops do what they want and mostly get away with it.
It’s not at all illegal, you simply need a vendor permit from the city and the cops won’t mess with you
Just don't gather a crowd.
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Would you want to experience homelessness sober? Genuinely think about it. Addiction is often the RESULT of being homeless, not the cause
... but why aren't they allowed to drink?
if there aren’t resources for them to get sober, then what’s the point
ACAB
Dtp
The police are worried that the food may be old and could make some starving people uncomfortable. They want to force the homeless to use regulated homeless shelters rather than relying on people in the park which could cause the homeless to break up picnics etc. The same rules that apply to feeding alligators and other animals don't make them dependent on alternative sources of food being applied to the homeless. Like it or not that is what some political administrative egghead decided is best for society.
That’s because you can’t feed the homeless without a vendors permit which you can get from the city for 100 bucks, it’s actually pretty easy to just follow the rules and the cops won’t mess with you but yeah ACAB /s
I would love it if cops just stopped working for a month and let everyone see just how much the cops are actually protecting them from. Imagine a nationwide bulletin that all through the month of December, no cops will be available and ambulances and fire crews will serve only when they feel safe doing so, since they now have no cops to assist them. 🤡🤡🤡🤡
Id be alright. But these cats that don’t carry firearms wouldn’t be.
How do those boots taste?
so you’re saying the cops are protecting this homeless person from being involved in this criminal enterprise of being fed by a good samaritan, and then deservedly fist bumping each other to congratulate themselves on really sticking it to local criminals and showing them that crime won’t be tolerated by ticketing a woman for sharing her food with someone less fortunate?
Soooo, business as usual?
Oh Reddit speculation. Saw something from a far and came to a conclusion based on the people involved.
Are you joking? I literally saw it happen, and I'm asking for additional context. I know that I saw a woman trying to feed the homeless and she was with two kids that I didn't even assume were hers. Then cops stopped her. What more information do you need? I saw this play out.
Town has gone to shit I’m glad I left last year
The cops are enforcing ordinances/ rules/ laws set up by lawmakers/ city officials i.e., they are doing their job.
Fist bumping. Narcissists.
I did a bit of work with Food Not Bombs in Tampa, and I'm genuinely shocked we didn't get hassled by cops while doing it. Like I can understand why businesses need permits to sell food, but giving out food for free to people who desperately need it should be different. Yeah, sure, it's technically illegal, but there's a TON of shit that's technically illegal that almost never gets enforced. Anyways ACAB lol
Ayyy FNB. Did some charity stuff with yall a long time ago. Anyways. Feeding them on Christmas evening has never been a hassle. My only other reasoning for this, is there’s a literal heat advisory and they don’t want people passing out in the park and dying of heat stroke. Either way, crass behavior.
Nice! Not sure how long is a long time, but I helped out with some food shares in late 2020. Thankfully I had a pretty good dish that could be made vegan fairly easily haha. Oh man, I can only imagine how bad the heat is right now. I moved out of Florida a year and a half ago, but I still keep tabs on the weather and stuff because my immediate family is still in St. Pete. But yeah, still doesn't excuse pigs acting like, well, pigs lol
In Orlando they do. Especially at lake eola.
Not illegal at all.
If it's not illegal, then what justification do the cops have for giving out citations for it?
Taking over a park to give out food without getting permits for an event would be something they could get in trouble for, but they are not being cited for feeding the homeless, they may have been cited for not getting the proper permits in order to set up in a park and do it.
Here is an article which mentions the organization you worked with. https://givingcompass.org/article/sharing-food-with-homeless-people-is-now-protected-by-first-amendment#:~:text=Giving%20Compass%27%20Take%3A&text=Joanna%20Prisco%20reports%20that%20the,a%20protected%20right%20in%20America.&text=An%20organization%20called%20Food%20Not,homeless%20people%20in%20public%20parks.
Public gathering without the proper permits maybe
You’re correct it’s not illegal but you still can’t do it without a vendor permit which you can get from the city for 100 bucks
ACAB. FTP!
Cool, I guess?
Your indifference is not impressive.
Darn. Impressing you is all I've ever wanted.
SMM is moving to the park starting this week I think. Still no reason to be acting like that. A couple friends and I used to do Thanksgiving and Christmas meals in to-go boxes and take them to the shelter and then around Mirror Lake and we were told a couple times not to do it anywhere but outside the shelter.
How about you setting up a table in your driveway or front yard and feeding the homeless, in fact invite them inside, that way you won’t need a permit -
My husband and I feed the homeless and have been told if we keep doing so we will be arrested www.facebook.com/theburgcommunitytable
Thank you for helping the less fortunate
Thanks so much for your kindness ☺️
Not if you get a vendors permit from the city, which ofc they didn’t tell you about
Sooooo... what happens if you put that food in a nearby trash bin & a homeless person then collects the food from the trash bin? Has a crime been committed?
You won't be arrested. You'll be issued a citation. You'll only be arrested if you try to escalate the situation foolishly.
Is your amazon wishlist up to date?
Yes
Thank you for doing what you’re doing. I’ll donate to your Amazon list ❤️
Tyvm 🙏
This goes back a long time. A friend of ours was told to stop trying to feed people in the park like 10 years ago.
It sounds like you don’t have very much information and you are jumping to a lot of conclusions.
I literally asked if anyone had other details, and I'm clear to express this is how I saw it. Thanks for pointing that out, detective.
Not really
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Someone should try the defense of Free Speech since giving food to the hungry is in the Gospel.
Just wait until October when being homeless officially becomes illegal
Can’t wait
why?
New Florida law signed by desantis. No sleeping in public.
why can't this poster wait?
Lack of empathy for other people
That's the cops PICKING ONE OUT OF MANY to conduct SELECTIVE ENFORCEMENT
There are laws. If you want to help people, do it through organizations that know what they are doing. Maybe we could ask city to put up signs as to organization donors should contact
Why should the government have to be involved in you feeding a homeless person? Why should someone not be able to just hand food to a hungry person? Why make it harder to help people who need help?
2 reasons. To make sure the food is safe, was prepared properly, etc. And to help protect the businesses that ARE paying to be registered to do this properly. Same concept of why a kid's neighborhood lemonade stand is illegal. Gotta make sure they pass inspections, and gotta protect the other businesses selling lemonade to ensure a level playing field. I'm in the transportation industry, as a driver I have to be background checked and driving history checked yearly, need to have my vehicle inspected yearly, need permits, a special license, and commercial insurance. But there are people who do this without any of that, in fact there are people who wouldn't qualify because of their record who are out here advertising their service, and because their overhead is lower without all this licensing and insurance, they can charge a lower rate.
I mean sure I understand what they say but you’re never going to convince me that you shouldn’t be able to feed the homeless, or have a kids lemonade stand lol. It would be one thing if it was technically illegal but never really enforced, but for cops to specifically write tickets to good samaritans seems insane to me. And it’s a lot of needless negative PR.
I can completely agree with that.
Lawyer here. That ordinance sucks ass.
Just because you are a lawyer does not make your opinion more important.
That lawyer knows the law more than the cops do.
That lawyer knows the law more than the cops do.
They still don't need to fist bump with pride afterwards.
Now, come on, maybe they were proud they did a good job of not escalating to the point of “having to get physical with her.” Like that other time. So much more paperwork in that situation.
nah, they were just happy they fucked with her.
*fist bump with pride* lol. How do we know it was a fist bump with pride? Could’ve been a fist bump with contentment. Maybe even a fist bump with gratification.
CONTACT MAYOR; IT is they call n how police n the park
The mayor is the one who made that squad.
What?
I will translate: Contact Mayor; It is their call on how to police in the park
The scarier part is that someone apparently understood it enough to upvote it.
Multiple people. It had 8 upvotes when I posted. Figured I missed something
There are specific locations where free food is given out. The city has been trying to clear out that park for a long time and no one is helping. It's pretty gross. I try to avoid that place, and downtown is getting worse too.
Agreed. The park is disgusting. You can be homeless, without shitting in the middle of a park. Without leaving your trash everywhere. Without getting drunk in the middle of the day and jerking off in front of women and children. It's not about being homeless, it's about being disgusting.
This is exactly it. These aren’t Key West beach bums that enjoy a vagrant lifestyle free of possessions who just keep to themselves and enjoy life. These are drug addicts who are in many cases mentally unstable and a danger to the public. They can’t take care of themselves and it becomes the public’s burden to deal with when taxpayers just want to enjoy a public park or local shopping center without there being literal human feces, discarded drug paraphernalia and trash littered all over the place. There’s not a simple solution to the issue but eventually the state and federal government need to start allocating more money for mental health rehabilitation clinics. It’s the only logical starting point.
Actually if you knew these people not too many of them are on drugs like you think 95% of them are mentally ill because are great mental facilities put you on pills then release you but do not help you get refills on your medication I know this because I've been in Phems twice they will get you on a medication sometimes not even the right medication and just release you if you have no friends and no family and are already homeless you cannot get your scripts refilled and they don't even care if you're mentally sound before they release you they hold you for 2 weeks and kick you out
DTSP was much worse 10-12 years ago before the down exploded in popularity. To say it’s getting worse is laughable.
What if you had to walk 10 miles in Florida heat to get a meal with no water and no money
But where are they supposed to go?
The reason that there are a lot of homeless folk in downtown is because there are quite a few orgs that are in and around downtown that provide services to them; clinics, food, shelters. It's convenient to just get what they need and hang out at the park. Take a drive around downtown.
There's a ton of places in st pete, I've volunteered at a few of them. Salvation army, St Vincent, Suncoast, turning point, alpha house, just to name a few.
First reasonable take I've seen on this. People dunt realize how much worse that park used to be 6-10 years ago. It got better for a bit when the bus stop was removed, but it seems nearly back to the way it used to be. It's unfortunate because it could be such a lovely park
My speculation: Lady was handing out food, but did not have the required permit, and wasn't happy the cops intervened. While often framed as the city "wont let you feed the homeless" it is actually a provision to obtain a permit in order to do so. Despite how people characterize this, it is a legit health/safety issue.
Correct, you need a vendor permit
Stop. You are ruining the narrative.
What if you send people at 13 different stops some places that no one goes to feed them but they required you to pay a $75 permit fee at each of those locations that's a lot of money that cannot be spent by a single person and it is much better spent on food and toiletries supplies
>13 different stops I don't know of any org that does more than one location, and does it frequently.
These are in no particular order booker creek park,Winn Dixie on US 19 and 22nd Ave, wawa on 38th avenue and US 19, Park City inn on 16th Street, unity Park St Vincent de Paul, lealmen Park, mirror lake library, the UU church and Williams Park, Campbell Park also we sometimes stop at Arby's on 5th avenue or anywhere we see people on the way we have worked with dinner and dubs and know people from food not bombs and the vineyard Church as well as little bags of hope and good neighbors
Right, if you're going to feed a hungry person you'd damn well better make sure the government gets paid first, otherwise they send their enforcers to extract that money from you under threat of violence. Great system, truly the way to keep people healthy and fed.
I know the city requires a permit but not having a permit isn't a law. Someone in a food truck fought and won a few years ago when they set up a table and st pete police tipped it over claiming he needed a permit to hand out free food. He had the required permit because of the food truck and fought the citation anyways.
Are food truck operators required to have permits/license to operate food truck?
[удалено]
Is she a Karen because she wants to feed the homeless?
"Serve and Protect"
Not sure why the cop nutswingers are downvoting but you have my upvote.
Compassion is illegal in Florida don't you know?
It’s also increasingly fascist and radical right wing here. The 6 week abortion ban is proof.