A New Chapter

We are about to begin a new chapter at Central Presbyterian Church. In a matter of days, our new parking garage and student center will be open for use, and this provides new potential to be a powerful blessing to our current congregation and to the community around us. Just as the best hammer in the world is only as effective as the craftsman who wields it, the extent of the blessing hinges in large part on how we as a congregation choose to use the new facilities.  In an effort to steward these resources for maximum benefit, we are honing our philosophy and policies which will guide the use of the new facilities.

The Parking Garage: Sundays vs. Weekdays

For the first time in our history on this property, we will have a place to park that is "on campus." The garage provides nearly 100 parking spaces. As a result, we need to be smart about how we utilize the garage for our different events. Generally speaking, there are two distinct scenarios: 1) Sunday morning, and 2) Weekdays.

Sunday Mornings are a special time at Central. Our campus is teeming with activity as we worship the Lord together, attend classes together, care for children of all ages, and enjoy times of fellowship together. This makes it critical for us to think strategically about parking on Sunday mornings. The new garage doesn't replace any of our existing options (outlined below), but rather supplements them. These options allow us to think “missionally” about how to use the new parking garage. The temptation will be for all of us to flock to the new garage because it is so convenient (and nice looking!). But that would be an opportunity missed.

In order to make Sunday morning as accessible to those who need it most, the new parking garage will be prioritized in the following manner:

1. Guests: How many times have you invited someone to Central, only to have them frustrated by the parking situation? The new garage gives us a new way to improve our guest experience, and to make the Gospel more accessible to the world around us.
2. Disabled and Elderly (age 70+): The new garage provides safe and easy access to this important segment of our congregation. 
3. Families with Young Children (5th grade and younger): Parents with young children will have a much safer way to get their families into the church.

If one of the above 3 categories does not describe you, we ask that you NOT use the garage on Sunday mornings. 

This is ok, because we can still have all of our traditional Sunday parking options:

• Along Hanley Rd. in the designated areas near Central
• In the Central Christian School garage
• In the parking lot behind th sold Layton's (7930 Clayton Rd.)
• In the old Schnuck's lot at the corner of Hanley and Clayton
• In the Davis Place neighborhood between the hours of 8am and 1pm

Weekdays are a completely different dynamic. The new parking garage will be able to serve the needs of just about every program we have at Central. Come and experience the convenience and beauty of the new garage anytime between Sundays, without restriction. This is also the case for Sunday evenings and Saturdays.

Tags: parking, garage, neighborhood, davis place