VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) — Virginia Beach is testing a way to prevent people from sleeping on benches.

The Virginian-Pilot (http://bit.ly/1sB8ECt ) reports that the city has added center armrests to about 15 benches on the Boardwalk, along with an extra bar on each end. The idea is to deter homeless people from stretching out on the benches.

If the pilot program is successful, center armrests could be installed on more benches. But it wouldn’t be cheap.

There are more than 400 wooden benches on the Boardwalk and connector parks that lead to Atlantic Avenue. It would cost about $100,000 to add center armrests to all of them.

One option is sponsorships. Hoteliers will discuss the matter at a meeting in June.

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Information from: The Virginian-Pilot, http://pilotonline.com

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