Common sense is key in East Washington
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Although they are often matters for dispute and debate, zoning laws are ultimately expressions of common sense.
It makes sense to not allow, say, a fast-food restaurant or a nightclub in the middle of a residential neighborhood, just as it would make no sense to put a mansion in the middle of an industrial park.
In East Washington, however, some officials have seemingly wanted to abandon commonsense enforcement of zoning regulations and embark instead on nitpicking.
Early last week, we reported First Christian Church is contemplating leaving its longtime home because they’ve been told by borough officials they must make pricey repairs to curbs along Wilmont Avenue in order to comply with East Washington’s new sidewalk ordinance. To make footing that bill all the more arduous, church leaders were also informed that they had to stop renting out the building’s social hall for meetings of Weight Watchers because Weight Watchers is a for-profit enterprise.
So, let’s see if we have this straight. It’s OK if – let’s pick numbers out of the air – 50 people show up for choir practice on any given night, but not OK if 12 people wander in for a Weight Watchers meeting? The borough’s zoning regulations forbidding that kind of business were meant to prevent someone from, say, opening a shoe shop in their home, not to prohibit a church from renting out its hall to an organization that has laudable goals, even if they turn a buck or two along the way.
It also should be noted churches strike deals with groups like Weight Watchers not because they’re looking to fatten their bank accounts, but keep the lights on. Attendance at neighborhood churches in this region and in other parts of the country has been declining in recent years, as parishioners die off or drift away to megachurches. And when a church closes its doors, it can often take years for the building to be repurposed.
It’s time for East Washington to demonstrate some restraint and practicality and let First Christian Church conduct its business without undue interference.