Dallas Arboretum Pulls Plug On Scheduled Religious Event

[Oceander]

Dallas Arboretum Pulls Plug On Scheduled Religious Event

By Annie Potasznik & J.D. Miles | CBSDFW.COM |   March 20, 2014 10:14 PM

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - New Saint Peter Presbyterian Church will hold its Easter week service somewhere other than the Dallas Arboretum for the first time in a decade this year.

But the botanical gardens told the church to look elsewhere for their annual event.  Members of the New Saint Peter Presbyterian Church were taken aback and question why the arboretum would pull the plug with such little notice.

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But Arboretum officials deny that religious groups are barred from holding private events after hours.  On its website, the nonprofit that oversees the 66-acre site promotes itself as a venue for birthdays, weddings and lectures.  A spokesperson, who declined an interview on-camera with CBS 11 News, released a statement saying the decision to cancel was because “The Dallas Arboretum feels strongly that we must watch over the usage of space on our property and parking lots by those who wish to rent it for a private event after public hours.  We need to protect our neighborhoods, watch the traffic flow and provide security personnel for traffic congestion and crowd control.”

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But parking shouldn’t be an issue, according to church members who claim about 75 people attend the annual event.

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[Atomic Cow]

Bet of some homo group wanted it, no way it would be denied.

[mountaineer]

the nonprofit that oversees the 66-acre site promotes itself as a venue for birthdays, weddings and lectures.

I suspect a heck of a lot more than 75 attend such other events, on average, and those folks also drive cars, making the "traffic congestion" excuse rather lame.