August 09, 2024
Provided Image/Philly Bike Action
Tenth Presbyterian Church in Rittenhouse has withdrawn permits that allowed people to park in the bike lanes on Spruce and Pine streets during its Sunday services. The move came after weeks of protests, like the one shown above, from bicycle advocates.
People attending Tenth Presbyterian Church in Rittenhouse no longer can park in the bike lanes on Spruce and Pine streets on Sundays.
The city previously granted parking permits to Tenth Presbyterian and other houses of worship that allowed cars to be parked on bike lanes during their services. On Wednesday, the church withdrew the Spruce and Pine Street bike lanes from its parking permit following several weeks of negotiations with the bicycle advocacy group Philly bike Action. The change frees up bike lanes on six blocks on Sundays.
In April, Philly Bike Action began holding "bike lane parties" on Spruce Street on Sundays to prevent churchgoers from parking in the bike lanes.
"Our family-friendly demonstrations drew a lot of support from the general public," Philly Bike Action Vice Chairperson Jessie Amadio said. "Residents of Spruce and Pine Street were cheering us on from their windows and bringing us water bottles."
Though other houses of worship also have permits that allow people to park in bike lanes, Philly Bike Action centered its demonstrations outside Tenth Presbyterian, because Spruce and Pine streets are a crucial route for bicyclists and the church has more permitted parking in those lanes than other nearby institutions.
In May, Tenth Presbyterian's Elder Board began meeting with representatives from Philly Bike Action, the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia and other interested parties to discuss parking alternatives.
Three other institutions near Spruce or Pine Streets – Saint Peter's Church and Old Saint Joseph's Church in Society, and the Philadelphia Ethical Society on Rittenhouse Square – had withdrawn their bike lane parking permits by January.
The death of Dr. Barbara Friedes, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia resident who was fatally struck by an alleged drunk driver while riding her bicyle on Spruce Street in mid-July, spurred protests demanding the city protect bike lanes with concrete barriers. At the end of July, Old Pine Street Presbyterian Church in Society Hill followed other places of worship in withdrawing its bike lane permits.
Negotiations between Tenth Presbyterian and bike safety advocates continued through July as the church proposed permits with reduced hours while Philly Bike Action argued for ADA-accessible parking alternatives. Those negotiations ended this week with the church withdrawing its parking permit.
In a Facebook video, Tim Geiger, executive minister of Tenth Presbyterian, said the church is asking the city to approve a new parking permit that would expand parking options on the numbered streets near Tenth Presbyterian and add parking options on Lombard and Locusts streets.
"Under the new proposal, we hope to wind up with more on-street parking capacity than we had under the current permit," Geiger said, adding that the city's Streets Department is working to expedite the new proposal. Geiger said the new permit is expected to be in place starting Sunday, Aug. 18.
This Sunday, the church is asking people to park at the Penn South Street Garage, with 17th Street reserved for people with low mobility or disabilities.
Amadio said Philly Bike Action is still in talks with Society Hill Synagogue and Temple Beth Zion-Beth Israel Synagogue in Rittenhouse over their parking permits. But the advocacy group is ending its bike lane parties until further notice.
"We're waiting on the city to propose concrete safety upgrades following Dr. Friedes's death," Amadio said. "Thanks to the (Tenth Presbyterian) Church's decision to stop parking in the bike lanes, the path to implementing concrete protection is clearer than ever."
A petition for permanent concrete barriers for bike lanes on Spruce and Pine streets has amassed nearly 5,000 signatures, with a deadline of Aug. 13. Philly Bike Action and the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia plan to deliver the petition to the office of City Council President Kenyatta Johnson on Aug. 15.
