Let's Discuss Parking?

It's hard to imagine anything duller, but...

Does the availability of parking have any impact on a Lodge’s success?

Photo by Bri Tucker on Unsplash

A tale of two Lodges.

Once a month, I head up to Seattle for a meeting of Doric Lodge. Now Doric doesn’t have any parking. I mean zero.

Sometimes, if there isn’t a funeral going on, the funeral home down the street will let us park in their lot. Assuming that the bar patrons haven’t already filled it up. There’s sometimes a spot or two available on the street nearby, but who on earth could ever figure out Seattle’s cell phone based parking meter scheme?

A couple of years ago, a younger member of the Lodge pointed out a small pay parking lot about four blocks from the Lodge. It’s small and doesn’t call attention to itself, so usually has spots available. I tend to park there, pay with my credit card, and walk up the hill to the Lodge.

I also attend Centralia Lodge’s monthly Stated Meetings. Centralia has lots of parking. There’s a parking lot next to the building that the Lodge owned, prior to gifting it to the city, to be used as free public parking, in some time long past. If that is full, street parking is free, and available on all four sides of the building. If that is all taken up as well, there is another city owned parking lot directly across the street from the entrance to our building.

If I have to walk 100 feet from my car to the door of the building, it’s a rare occasion.

There’s nothing particularly odd about these two situations, it’s simply the difference between large metropolitan areas and predominantly rural areas.

But, here’s the thing, and the reason for this post today.

I hear about a lack of parking, a lot.

Primarily in rural Lodges, where there is a lot of parking!

And I’m just not sure if I’m nuts, or if everyone else is nuts!

I read recently about a Masonic Temple in another Jurisdiction going up for sale. One of the stated reasons for the sale was the lack of parking at the current space. Lodge members indicated that they hoped that by selling their current Temple, and buying or building a new one they will be able to get more parking.

But, it is located in a city I’ve never heard of in my life.

So, I must presume that it is much like all of the Lodges in fairly rural small cities in my Jurisdiction. Parking just can’t be that much of a problem.

But, then I think back to Centralia Lodge.

I hear from the Brother’s from time to time, about our Parking Problem. Heck, I heard it from a Brother last night. Once in a while, I even hear that maybe someday we’ll need to sell the building because of a lack of parking, on the assumption that the city might someday build something on the parking lot directly across the street.

But, I never hear worries about parking at Doric Lodge. Nor any thought of selling the building because of a lack of parking.

Interestingly, both Lodges have roughly the same sized total membership, and active membership.

So all of this brings up the question above:

Does the availability of parking have any impact on a Lodge’s success?

Or is it just something those of us with a more rural mindset like to complain about?

Let’s chat about it…