Por Ken Williams | Editor

Hillcrest will soon have five red meters that will allow people to donate change or make a gift by credit card to help the area’s homeless.

San Diego has a huge homeless problem, and Hillcrest along with Downtown and the San Diego River corridor are among the most affected areas in the city.

The Hillcrest Business Association (HBA) voted Tuesday night to sign an agreement with IPS Group in Pennsylvania to provide the donation meters, which look exactly like parking meters except they are painted red.

Ben Nicholls, executive director of the HBA, told his board members that they essentially would be replicating the “Make Change Count” drive in Downtown implemented by the Downtown San Diego Partnership. The only difference, he said, was that the five red meters in Hillcrest would be mobile, so that the HBA could take them to the Hillcrest Farmers Market on Sundays or to festivals and special events that draw large crowds.

The Downtown red meters have raised more than $10,000 over the past four years, according to an inewsource.org article published recently by San Diego Downtown News.

Nicholls also said the cost to the HBA would almost be free, since the red meters are being donated. “The real cost is staff time” and the credit-card processing fee, he added.

In other business, the HBA announced that Chris Long, who lives Downtown, was the winner of the Hillcrest shopping spree worth $1,500 in prizes and gift certificates. The HBA sponsors the annual SHOP Hillcrest for the Holidays raffle between Nov. 25 and Dec. 24.

The HBA also voted to apply for a $220,360 grant from the Uptown Community Parking District. The grant would cover the cost of the HBA to take over the Access Hillcrest website, mobile app and social media campaign as well as the transportation contract for the Lunch Loop and farmers market, among other proposals. Nicholls said the HBA likely would need to add a part-time employee or an intern to handle those additional duties.

Nicholls informed the board that Old Town Trolley does not plan to renew its contract with the parking district to operate the trolley service for Access Hillcrest, Lunch Loop and farmers market. That news set off a lively discussion about switching from lumbering trollies to nimble electric carts, like the kind run by MO’s Universe to serve customers of Urban MO’s, Baja Betty’s, Hillcrest Brewing Company and Gossip Grill.

In addition, the HBA voted to apply for an event permit with the city to conduct a Normal Street demonstration from May 12-15. The HBA has proposed turning the medians along Normal Street — from University Avenue to Washington Street — into a linear park. HBA member Michael Brennan said events would include a lecture on May 12, movie night on May 13, a craft beer crawl on May 14 and the farmers market on May 15.

—Ken Williams es editor de Uptown News y Mission Valley News y puede ser contactado en [email protected] or at 619-961-1952. Follow him on Twitter at @KenSanDiego, Instagram at @KenSD or Facebook at KenWilliamsSanDiego.