While walking around Nashville, Kim and I noticed something that seemed a bit odd.

There were parking meters randomly placed on sidewalks around the downtown area. We know that parking meters are usually placed on sidewalks, however these meters were very far from the curb. They definitely weren’t placed on the sidewalks for people to park and pay at.

After seeing these meters a bunch of times, we wondered why they were there. 

Once we stopped to take a look at one of these blue meters, we were impressed by their purpose.

There was a good amount of information on the meter. The first thing we read  was on the upper, semi-circular area. It said “Help Us End Homelessness”.

It seems like the city of Nashville really did a great job and were extremely creative with the re-purposing of these meters.

There were also a couple of stickers with a graphic/ logo of a fist holding a key with the words The Key Alliance. We weren’t sure what The Key Alliance was but luckily there was more information to read so we could find out.

Inside the meter I learned that:

Donations benefit the outreach program of The Key Alliance. This program links homeless individuals to Housing First, which provides permanent housing and case management to the most vulnerable members of our community.

Although the meters seemed to be out of place when we first spotted them, they totally made sense now. We loved the idea of using these meters for good and to help others. 

Good job Nashville for finding a creative way to raise money for people in need!