In regards to allowing the meeting attendance numbers to self regulate, here's the devil's advocate position.
Let's say your membership is 100 and your meeting space fits 50. Let's say during your growth phase, attendance was about 75% so at 60 members, 45 showed up. As you hit 80, 60 tried to make it in but it sucked badly due to crowding. The first 10 people that start NOT showing up due to crowding are not necessarily the least dedicated to the hobby or the club, it's just the people who are the most easily annoyed by crowds. What if the type of people that continue to show up are actually the least interested in the mission of the club but just the most tolerant of other sardines?
Long story short, there's got to be a way to keep the meetings focused and attended by people most willing to support the club's mission. Unfortunately, hitting that goal makes leadership into the bad guys no matter how you look at it.
I'd love to hear ideas on how to actually make that work. We're knee deep in our first attempt and I'm not liking it all that much.