Homewood City committee approves angled parking plan for Covenant Presbyterian Church on Old Montgomery Highway

The Homewood City council committee voted 4-0 to permit Covenant Presbyterian Church to pursue angled parking spaces in the Old Montgomery Highway right of way, approving a motion that will be forwarded to the full council for final action.

Councilor Hardin moved to allow the church to create angled parking spaces "with the proper identifications," and the motion was seconded and passed on a unanimous voice vote. Committee members discussed sight-line and pedestrian-safety concerns and asked that the final number and configuration be determined by surveys and engineering.

The item (Old Business 50424) originally requested 14 spaces at 65 Old Montgomery Highway. Committee members said the applicant returned with a revised plan proposing 11 spaces. The applicant cautioned that the engineered layout could change the count slightly — "it may be 12 or maybe 10," the applicant said — and estimated the project would yield roughly seven net new spaces once accounting for circulation and constraints.

The applicant's representative, Daniel, said the church's campus is landlocked and has grown in recent years. "Our membership just recently went over 1,700 members," he said, adding that the church has a parking agreement with a nearby medical facility and uses an off-duty police officer and volunteer parking teams for large Sunday services to manage traffic.

Council members pressed on safety tradeoffs. Councilor Hardin said he was worried that angled approaches might cause drivers to attempt awkward turns and backups, noting, "If they come down and just turn straight in, you're gonna … it's easier to get in. I understand the getting out issue." Another member said angled parking could provide a slight sight-distance improvement but recommended relying on traffic engineering to resolve equivalence questions.

Committee members also asked about stormwater and grading near a storm inlet; staff and the applicant said a survey team is working on a campus-wide survey and that final civil engineering will address drainage and the inlet's dimensions.

The committee approved the motion and will place the item on the full council agenda at the next meeting for final consideration. The motion was recorded as passing by a 4-0 voice vote.