Argall left the church and was forced to abandon his business of more than 20 years. He walked away with nothing. None of the other parishioners whose companies bought property since responded to questions about their plans. Right now, at least 30 businesses owned by non-parishioners are renting from Scientologists. But Scientologist-controlled companies are also sitting on at least 26 vacant lots and 31 empty storefronts and offices.
Businesses without ties to the church are moving into a few of those. Agami also signed two more leases on the same block with restaurants owned by people not connected to the church. Both are supposed to open soon. But far more non-Scientologists are moving out. Seven businesses have left following recent purchases, and at least three more are leaving this year, including Clearwater Plumbing and Gulf Coast Marine.
Both have been there for decades. Then he would try again, with new council members. In addition to a park and amphitheater, Imagine Clearwater also calls for several new projects on the waterfront with residences and retail. In summer , Mark Searcy, a longtime Clearwater real estate agent who is not a Scientologist, assembled a 1-acre site by getting the owners of three adjoining properties to agree to sell. Nearly two years after the properties were sold to a company run by two Scientologists, no redevelopment plans have been submitted.
Lares and his wife, Emily, sold the diner inside a decade ago. Lares declined again when Fischler met him at a restaurant in Pinellas Park for lunch, and once more when she tried in May. He had committed to downtown in But the promised downtown revival never came. Over the past two years, the properties surrounding the shop have been sold to Scientologist-controlled companies. Fischler approached Bosi again in September. By then, he had found an auto garage he could buy in Dunedin.
She reported full-time for six months, interviewing more than 90 people and reviewing more than 1, documents , to bring you this story.
Investigative journalism like this is the most expensive work that we do. Please consider supporting us with a tax-deductible donation to the Tampa Bay Times Investigative Fund.
Reporters analyzed thousands of rows of data and pulled more than 1, records from the Pinellas County Property Appraiser, the Pinellas County Clerk of Court and the Florida Division of Corporations.
The analysis considered property within the general boundaries of Cedar Street to the north, Missouri Avenue to the east, Chestnut Street to the south and the Intracoastal Waterway to the west. The analysis did not include residential parcels except in cases where they were bought in conjunction with commercial property or vacant land.
The Times counted each parcel that was assigned a value by the property appraiser as a single property with five exceptions. In those cases, four or more parcels purchased together clearly comprised a single piece of real estate.
The Times described sales as cash transactions when they were paid without a mortgage filed in public records. High-ranking defectors provide an unprecedented inside look at Scientology, its leader and the Lisa McPherson case. Four high-ranking defectors describe bizarre behavior and physical beatings inflicted by Scientology leader David Miscavige. The impact is clearest in the heart of downtown.
Take away the church footprint, a few condo towers and all buildings owned by the government. Half the properties were bought since January Almost immediately, a decades-long trickle of purchases by church members turned into a flood.
Since , the Church of Scientology and companies run by its members have bought 92 properties around the center of downtown. The church acquired three others in a land swap. Source: Times analysis. What it took to tell this story: 90 interviews. Help us keep bringing stories like this to you. Learn more about donating. The Church of Scientology acquired the building in as part of its downtown redevelopment plan. Sea Org members cross Cleveland Street.
Project Normandy was described in one of hundreds of internal memos Scientology officials exchanged about their plans to infiltrate and control Clearwater. The memos were later seized by the FBI. City of Clearwater. The Imagine Clearwater project aims to transform the city-owned waterfront into a vibrant park with gardens, a concert green, a walkway with views of the Intracoastal Waterway and mixed-use projects.
Scientology leader David Miscavige had his own redevelopment plan. Mayor George Cretekos listens at a City Council meeting in April as residents pushed the council to purchase a vacant lot that Scientology also wanted. Times Dozens of residents showed up to speak. Since , the Church has been sued by former memebers alleging enslavement at the Clearwater branch, critics claiming harassment and a class-action suit alleging the Church tried to bribe or blackmail Florida judges involved in Scientology cases.
Most of these case files have been sealed by courts due to the effort of Scientology attorneys. With multiple harassment cases, we know that the Church of Scientology settled out of court, but we do not know they amount they paid victims. The Church was in a constant contention with both local and state government regarding back taxes. Pinellas County would often threaten the Church that if back taxes were not paid, their downtown properties would be auctioned. Scientology has been brought to court by both the City of Clearwater and the IRS for failure to pay property taxes and involvement in taxable commercial activities, respectively.
The Church was facing similar lawsuits all around the country, so Church leadership planned to become a federally recognized religion in order to avoid further prosecution. All suits were dropped by memebers of Scientology once the IRS declared tax exemption for the Church. Coincidentally or not, downtown Clearwater development began to stagnate upon the arrival of Scientology, and is now seriously lagging behind downtown St.
Petersburg and Tampa. These factors, in contrast to decades prior, allows the Church to wield a significant degree of control over city government. The plan requires use of not just property owned by the Church, but also every property in a three block by four block area that encompasses all of downtown. The plan involves attracting a few major retail brands and then filling open spaces with handpicked businesses, similar to an outdoor mall.
The proposal will give the Church total control over the downtown area in regards to development and management of properties. Peace Memorial Presbyterian Church, to the right of the photo, was originally built in , and has also been carefully preserved. The three-story atrium of the Flag Building includes full-size bronze sculptures representing basic Scientology principles. The stained glass windows were inspired by the work of artist Marc Chagall.
The Fort Harrison swimming pool was completely refurbished in , along with the surrounding tropical garden. The lobby of the Fort Harrison welcomes Scientologists from around the world as well as charitable groups across the Tampa Bay region who utilize the grand auditorium for fundraisers and events. The Crystal Ballroom of the Fort Harrison is also used by local charitable groups for events, meetings and fundraisers.
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