Clearwater City Council is due to reconsider its decision to hand part of South Garden Avenue to the Church of Scientology after a petition challenging the move secured enough verified signatures to trigger the city’s referendum process.
The council is scheduled to discuss Referendum Petition 26-01 at a meeting on Thursday, 5 November, at Clearwater City Hall. The petition seeks to overturn the ordinance approving the conditional closure and transfer of the public right-of-way in downtown Clearwater.
Save the Garden, the residents’ group behind the campaign, submitted about 10,812 signatures in September. The Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections later confirmed that 7,577 were valid — comfortably above the 7,067 required under the city charter.
The city clerk certified the petition as sufficient on 13 October, meaning councillors must now either repeal the ordinance or allow the matter to proceed to a special election.
Why Clearwater is revisiting the Garden Avenue decision
Clearwater councillors voted 3-2 in June to vacate a roughly 470ft section of South Garden Avenue, which would enable the Church of Scientology to connect properties on either side of the road for a planned development featuring an entrance plaza and the proposed L Ron Hubbard Hall.
Supporters of the decision have argued that removing vehicles from the area would improve pedestrian safety and help families move between parking areas and the planned complex without crossing an active road.
Opponents say the council should not be able to transfer public land to a private organisation without the approval of local voters. The dispute has become another point of tension in Clearwater, where the Church of Scientology has maintained its international headquarters for decades and owns extensive property in the city centre.
The church has rejected the petition campaign’s legal basis. In a statement reported by local media, it said the petition was unlawful, adding that the council had approved the road vacation, the ordinance had been recorded and construction was under way.
A separate legal question is also hanging over the dispute. Clearwater officials have asked Florida’s attorney general to consider whether state law restricts the use of a referendum to challenge the Garden Avenue ordinance. An opinion had not been issued by the time of the council’s 5 November agenda.
Under the city charter, failure by the council to repeal the ordinance would require the issue to be put to Clearwater voters in a special election held between 90 and 150 days later. The pending state-law opinion could affect whether that vote takes place.
The Garden Avenue row follows another council decision involving public rights-of-way. Councillors voted 3-2 to approve the closure of parts of Laura Street, Grove Street and an alley for a proposed Scientology-backed EVO Entertainment complex, which is planned to include cinemas, bowling, laser tag and an arcade.
Save the Garden organiser Brooks Gibbs has said the campaign is about more than one road. “For the last year we’ve been warning the City Council that they’re coming for our streets,” he said.
The council meeting is due to begin at 6pm at the Council Chambers, 200 South Myrtle Avenue. Its decision will determine whether the Garden Avenue ordinance is abandoned or whether Clearwater residents will ultimately be asked to settle the dispute at the ballot box.
