Landmark's worship attendance has grown from an average of 518 in 1997 to averaging 719 in 1999. The increase was 15.7% for 1998 and 20.0% for 1999. For 2000 the projected attendance should be somewhere around 850. A new educational wing was added in 1999 at a cost of $432,000 but was full shortly after the completion, and the church is still facing a space shortage. The nursery was also enlarged and remodeled in 1999. From July 1999 to the present the annual baptism rate is nearly 10% of attenders. The number of small groups has increased from 24 in 1999 to 40 in 2000. And the congregation has maintained a steady rate of growth.

With the best of times comes the worst of times created by problems of numerical increase. The classroom space, seating space in the assembly, and parking lot space became problems needing solutions. Landmark did two studies over a 24-week period from July to December 1999. One focused on auditorium seating space and the other focus was on parking space. People can crowd a little closer in the auditorium, but that solution is not advisable for parking cars. The solution of one country preacher was "just pull up a little further on the grass when expecting a larger crowd." This proposed arrangement would not work for most churches. This article presents the problems and solutions in parking more cars within a reasonable distance to the church building. Using the "80 percent rule" of thumb which is "when facility space becomes 80% full, growth slows or stops." John Ellas stated the importance of parking, classroom space, and auditorium seating: "If any one of them becomes crowded, all growth is blocked."'

Landmark has 269 parking spaces on the church property and uses the multiple parking lots at a city park adjacent to the church. The city park has three parking lots. The closest one holds 85 cars and the next one holds 31 cars. The farthest parking lot is psychologically beyond walking distance, but holds 80 cars.

The Problem and Temporary Solutions

The parking problem at Landmark can be illustrated with the following examples from the study.

The Fourth of July weekend is traditionally a low attendance Sunday. The attendance was 598 with 268 automobiles in the church parking lot. Plenty of space was available for guests near the church. However, the next Sunday was a real eye opener. Before the worship assembly time, the church parking lots were full. In addition, 8 cars were parked along the side of the church entrance road, and 23 cars were parked on the grass along the south side of the building near the educational wing construction area. All 16 guest parking spaces were full. To make things worse, several families were seen circling the church parking lot and then driving away after failed attempts to locate a parking spot.

During the next two weeks the church's automatic telephoning equipment started calling church members to encourage folks to park in the city park's parking lots to leave room for late comers and guests. The following week, the phone equipment called again to thank church members for parking at the city park.

Back in the 1960s a vehicle carried on average 3.4 people. But with an affluent society, multi vehicle families, and more single parent families, the average has dropped significantly and is down to 2.2 for Landmark. In addition, one family out of four drives four cars to church because of different arrival times for parents and children, and the children going off with friends soon afterward. The occupancy range per vehicle was a low of 1.9 and a high of 2.3 in the Landmark study.

Some Lessons Learned

One rainy day presented another problem. Many traditional families drove up under a newly constructed covered drive through and unloaded passengers before the driver drove away and parked the car. However, a single parent family could not drop off the children and then park the vehicle. Instead they would park in the parking lot, unload the children, diaper bag and other things, and walk in the rain to the church doors. Using an umbrella was virtually impossible with two small children and baggage in arms. We now have parking lot greeters with large umbrellas who escort single parent families and their possessions to the church door. In fact, parking lot greeters have a positive and lasting impact on everyone they have an opportunity to serve.

Most urban people are influenced by mall parking and the closeness to a particular mall entrance. Likewise, church attenders expect similar conditions.

People will walk up to a hundred yards to attend church. Parking beyond that has a psychological barrier and they will drive off without attending church if they can't find convenient parking. This has been observed on four different occasions. The question remains, will they ever come back?

The guest's first impression before meeting any church members is the green space of shrubs and trees, adequate walkways, and general appearance of the parking lots. The parking lots must be clear of weeds, leaves, and trash in order to make a good first impression.

How much is each parking space worth? Take the total weekly contributions and divide by the number of parking spaces. For example, $20,000 weekly contributions divided by 400 parking places equals $50.00 per week or about $2,600 for each parking space per year.

As the church grows, for every 100 attenders, the church needs 57 more parking spaces (100 divided by 2.2 occupants per car, then divided by .8 [maintain the 80% rule], which equals 57 parking spaces).

An unfortunate reality is that church leadership seldom sees the parking problem because they arrive early and leave late. However, guests normally arrive late or just in time. Some guests just want to check out the church before getting involved with a lot of conversation. Because of the unobserved situation, it is wise to plan a study of parking conditions on a regular basis.

Church attendance is usually the highest in the fall (September through November). This is the best time to do a parking lot study. There are other high attendance Sundays such as Easter. A high attendance Sunday is usually followed with two or three low attendance Sundays. This is a roller coaster effect either from room space, or not enough parking space. Psychologically, if any of these areas is more than 80 percent - 85 percent full, the message is conveyed the church is full and becomes a barrier to growth.

In Retrospect

With Landmark, it is still the best of times for bringing people to the Lord and maturing disciples through 40 small home group meetings. And it is the worst of times with the overcrowded facility conditions. The financing of most space -- whether assembly seating, classrooms, or the parking lot-ends up being capitalized by a mortgage over a number of years. Physical additions take time to construct and we observed that it's best to do your planning one to two years in advance.

Planning for growth is a continuous ministry at Landmark. For example, the church leadership had considered a temporary shuttle service both before and after church from the park's farthest parking lot to the church. However, the logistics created new problems and the idea was rejected. The decision has been made to implement two services this fall with adequate time between services to avoid traffic jams. In another decision 200 more parking spaces are planned. The addition of more educational classroom space is in the planning phase for the near future as well. These are truly "the best of times" for Landmark.

FOOTNOTES:

1 John W. Ellas, Measuring Church Growth: A Research-Based Tool for Evaluating and Planning (Houston, TX: Center for Church Growth, 1997), 109.