Catonsville Baptist Church hopes car show drives traffic

When it comes to can't-miss events on Frederick Road, the parade on the Fourth of July, the arts and crafts festival in September and the Christmas tree lighting in December each draw tens of thousands to downtown Catonsville each year.

Could a car show be the next big thing?

It could if Catonsville Baptist Church Pastor Mark Klimovitz has his way.

The first-year pastor sees antique cars eventually lining both sides of Frederick Road and an event rivaling the other Catonsville main attractions.

"One thing I found about car shows is that they're kind of like sea gulls that flock to food," said Klimovitz, 50. "You just never know how many cars are going to show up. The word gets out, and they just come."

While Klimovitz, who became pastor at the church on Oct. 25 last year, has high hopes, he knows his Captivate Catonsville Week car show has to start somewhere.

That somewhere is the parking lot of the church at 1004 Frederick Road at 3 p.m. Oct. 23.

The aim may be lower, but Klimovitz, a Sykesville resident, still has his sights set high.

"My hope is that we overflow the parking lot, that we don't have enough space," Klimovitz said.

The car show runs until 6:30 p.m. and will also feature pumpkin painting, free food, a moon bounce, music, a puppet show and roping and yo-yo demonstrations.

Even after the cars leave, the free celebration will continue with music, puppet shows and children's activities from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 23-26.

"It seems like things slow down a bit from all the busy-ness of the summer, but people are still looking for something to do," Klimovitz said. "This is an opportunity for people in the community to come together and visit with their neighbors."

The Greater Catonsville Chamber of Commerce has done some advertising for the event because the Catonsville Baptist Church is a member, said Teal Cary, the chamber's executive director.

Cary said the event, whether big or small, has the potential to help the community.

"Any event that helps bring new visitors to Catonsville and introduce Catonsville businesses to new patrons is always supported and encouraged by the chamber," she said.

Cary noted that Catonsville hasn't had an event on Frederick Road that was exclusively a car show but noted the arts and crafts festival once showed off antique cars as part of the festivities.

The lack of a car show on a stretch of the Historic National Road could make it a big event, Klimovitz said.

"It's a rich part of American history and a rich part of Catonsville's history, but Catonsville doesn't have a car show," Klimovitz said. "What better place to do it then where one of the first highways in this country starts in Catonsville?"

As for the event growing to match the size of other major Catonsville attractions, Cary said, "It does take a long time to grow an event like that.

"That would be great for Catonsville if it were to work like that," she added. "It's good to dream big."

Though the dream is big, the budget for the event this year is small.

Klimovitz said the church stretched its $1,000 budget as far as it could go and relied on people donating their services to support the four-day event.

"We're just doing it on faith that we'll make it through," Klimovitz said with a laugh. "Everything else is just sweat equity, a lot of people just volunteering their time to make it happen."