After more than a year of discussion, the Clearwater City Council again gave initial approval to allow the Church of Scientology to take over a stretch of downtown roadway.
Similar to a decision from last March, the council voted 3-2 Thursday evening to move forward with vacating South Garden Avenue in front of the church’s Flag Building.
But last year the city was going to receive more than $1 million for the road segment through a purchase and sale agreement. That was before the state attorney general said the church likely owns the land and therefore could ask for the road without paying fair market value. This went against a memorandum from the former city attorney that said the opposite.
Heeding the opinion of the state, the city decided it cannot sell the road. The request requires an additional vote before it’s official.
“I find no compelling basis for denying this request,” Council member David Allbritton said.
The church, which has its international spiritual headquarters in downtown Clearwater, has said it needs South Garden Avenue for a large event hall — plans for which go back to the early ‘90s. The person leading the design of the project said during the meeting the road is necessary for creating a safety buffer.
Scientologists packed the Clearwater Main Library for the discussion Thursday. Dozens of people signed up to speak in favor of the request, saying a vote of support will allow for the completion of their campus, provide a safe environment for events and positively contribute to downtown.
“Many of us have supported this project, donated to it and have been waiting years to see it become a reality,“ said Ellen Firestone.
Multiple city employees had concerns regarding the request, according to an internal review, including traffic analysis included in the application. The city’s engineer also said the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority may need the road for a future bus route, although council members in support of the request contested this.
The city approved a development application for the event hall in 2018. The church did not ask for South Garden Avenue or other public streets at that time. According to the memorandum from former city attorney David Margolis, Scientology never applied for building permits or “took any other discernible action” to begin construction. The church’s approval for the project expired in 2019.
“I do not believe the choice is between the project and the street. I believe both can coexist, ” Council member Lina Teixeira said. “The project’s own earlier vision demonstrated that possibility. To me that is significant.”
Teixeira and Mayor Bruce Rector, who cast the dissenting votes, both cited the city’s downtown development plan as reasoning for opposing the request and questioned the need to close a public road.
Council members Allbritton, Mike Mannino and Ryan Cotton voted yes. Mannino said the city has never denied such a request, and he wasn’t “interested in going down a path of discrimination.”
The church initially submitted a vacation request for South Garden Avenue in December 2024. In March 2025, the City Council approved the request in a 3-2 vote. Under those terms, the church would have purchased the road for $1.375 million and agreed to a timeframe for building the auditorium.
Residents formed a group to submit an alternative proposal for South Garden Avenue focused on memorializing Clearwater’s African American history. The coalition of residents, called Save the Garden, then started a petition for a new city ordinance that would require voter approval for future transfers of rights-of-way in downtown Clearwater.
The group is suing the city after Clearwater officials ruled it did not collect enough signatures for a ballot initiative on the transfer question.
“The petitions were all signed by people who love this place we call home,” Barbara Sorey-Love, a member of the coalition and president of the Clearwater African American Foundation, said during public comment. ”We fight with all our might to save what’s left of downtown."
Scientology withdrew its initial request in May 2025, following a council meeting where it seemed opinion on the dais had changed against its favor. Months of back-and-forth ensued between the church’s lawyer, the city and state attorney general James Uthmeier, who warned against discriminatory comments made on the dais and attaching conditions to the sale.
The City Council is scheduled to meet again the third week of June.
