Parking: got in trouble...

[Aggie_Ama]

I would suggest contacting the pastor since he left his number. Maybe if you call and explain why you are parking there and find out if it okay during non-service hours he will let you. A donation would be nice since they do have to maintain their lot.

Is there a school on your route? Most of the schools here do not mind people using their lots for parking on weekends, especially now that it is summer.

For commuting DH and I park at a large grocery store. So far there has not been an issue, but we park in the back of the lot where customers do not park. The employees park back there but they still have plenty of open slots.

[Mr. Bloom]

Just like different people have different personalities, Every church is different. Some are interested in outreach...others are internally focused (which is generally not a good model for a church...)

I wouldn't offer a donation for Sunday use. A good church is not in it for money. Fact is that Sunday is the "busy day" and they may simply have needed every space. I'd also be surprised if they made a big deal out of using it other days...if they did, that may tell me how I'd characterize the church. Matthew 10:8 commands us to "Freely Give".

Our last church spent $2million dollars to add on a health & fitness wing which we made available to the entire community for use - free of charge. The only requirement was that you sign a liability waiver. To our church, this was part of the mission - to challenge the stereotypical view of a church. We CAN'T change the message, but we can offer it in different ways that meet people where they are. We had to overcome the stereotypes set by bad churches... Just like we as cyclists have to be ambassadors to counteract the impact of rude cyclists...

I'm sure that many in this forum have had bad experiences with a church. I'm sorry that you've had these experiences, I cannot justify it, but I can say that there are good ones and bad ones...and just because the word "church" is in the name, doesn't mean that there mission is good.

[indysteel]

It certainly couldn't hurt to talk to the pastor. I agree with Mr. Silver that some churches don't seem to mind, while others do. When in doubt, ask for permission or park elsewhere. There's a church lot that some cyclists, including myself, use periodically. They're used to us and don't seem to care, but I wouldn't park there on Sunday. We often use church lots for our club rides, but we get express permission to do that--given the number of cars and liability issues.

When I first started riding, I often did a ride that was marked and maintained by a local bike shop. Instead of parking at the shop and having to cross a busy street, I would instead park in the adjacent neighborhood that is along the route. A homeowner spotted me once and asked only that I not park near his mailbox. Fair enough. A few months later, however, that same man approached me and told me that I'd been the topic of a recent HOA meeting. He'd been enlisted to inform me that I wasn't to park in the neighborhood--that the streets are for residents and their guests.

I was too stunned and tired to tell him to go jump!!!! The neighborhood isn't a gated community and last I checked, I'm free to park on a city street, even within a subdivision. It really burned me up that someone would be that petty. Plus, after having talked to the bike shop about the situation, we both agreed that the HOA was probably just a front and that it was really just this guy's beef with me. I haven't parked there since, but mostly because I don't do that route much anymore.

[smilingcat]

A few months later, however, that same man approached me and told me that I'd been the topic of a recent HOA meeting. He'd been enlisted to inform me that I wasn't to park in the neighborhood--that the streets are for residents and their guests.

It's not worth getting your car vandalized either. go else where. Also move your parking spot from time to time.

smilingcat

[Pedal Wench]

We have a ride that tons of cyclists do that starts at a church. When we're welcome, there's a sign that says, "Welcome Cyclists" and there's always a donation box in the lot, if the spirit moves you.

In general, we never park there on Sundays. Even if the lots empty when we get there, there's no way of knowing what's scheduled later in the day. We have seen signs on Saturdays that say, "No cyclist parking today" when they've had a special event.

[Geonz]

Give 'em a call just to touch base and apologize... and satisfy any curiosity about temperament
I parked my motorcycle at the church close to me ... to go to morning Mass. Yea, I had a note on it that I wasn't supposed to park there. I wrote back that she could chat with me - I'd be the one with the helmet.
I got an excuse instead of an apology back and reminded myself to remember how obnoxious that is next time I started to say "but I was just..."

[sundial]

Call the number, ask the pastor to forgive you and then enlighten him as to why you chose his parking lot. Perhaps he will become motivated to ride a bike when he learns you are a commuter. You never know what seeds you'll sow.