Clearwater council approves first reading to vacate portion of Garden Avenue over objections

The Clearwater City Council voted on June 4 to approve on first reading an ordinance that would vacate the southern portion of South Garden Avenue, clearing a path for the planned L. Ron Hubbard Hall and associated plaza. The measure, ordinance 9907‑26, passed 3–2 after more than two hours of applicant presentations, expert testimony and public comment.

Robert Potter, who represented the applicant, told the council the project application runs nearly 1,000 pages and described the proposed convocation center as a 3,500‑seat facility with an approximate $250 million building budget. "It will accommodate up to 3,500 people," Potter said, describing the hall as a venue for religious and charitable events and asserting it would contribute to downtown Clearwater’s vitality.

Opponents at the hearing urged the council to preserve Garden Avenue as part of the downtown street network. Barbara Sorey Love of the Clearwater African American Foundation, speaking for groups opposing the vacation, warned that vacating the street would threaten public access and downtown history and criticized what she described as concentrated property acquisition downtown. "We fight with all our might to save what's left of downtown," she said.

City staff and the interim city attorney described required conditions in the ordinance if the council approved the vacation. Those conditions include new easements for public utilities, relocation of utilities at the applicant’s expense, compliance with specific city‑code requirements (including a parking fee calculation noted in the staff report at roughly $114,450), and a requirement that the applicant obtain a certificate of occupancy within a set time period. The ordinance was amended on the council floor to change the deadline from five to six years; the amendment was included in the final motion.

Traffic and safety arguments were central on both sides. The applicant’s traffic consultant said recent studies (2023–2026 updates) show minimal non‑applicant traffic on the block in peak hours and that Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority does not plan to route buses down that segment. Opponents and some council members pointed to the city’s 2018 Downtown Redevelopment Plan, which discourages vacating public streets without replacing them and prioritizes connectivity and future transit corridors.

Council debate split along those lines. Members who supported the measure emphasized precedent and property‑rights/legal guidance from the Florida Attorney General’s advisory opinion, which said the abutting property owners likely hold the fee interest beneath the street, reducing the city’s entitlement to receive fair‑market proceeds. Members who opposed cited the downtown plan’s preservation language and unanswered questions about future transit, infrastructure flexibility and equity of removing a public street for a venue that will host a mix of public and private events.

The motion to approve ordinance 9907‑26 as amended carried on first reading by a 3–2 vote. Two members voted against the measure, saying they were not persuaded the public‑benefit burden had been met and expressing concern about permanently removing an active downtown street. The council indicated the item will return for a second reading and final vote at a future meeting.

What happens next: Because the approval was a first reading, the ordinance will return to the council for a second reading and final action. The ordinance’s conditions require the applicant to secure building permits and satisfy utility and easement requirements before the city issues a right‑of‑way permit; if those conditions are not met within the amended six‑year timeframe, the vacation would not occur.

Council members and staff said the city will accept speaker records from those who did not get time to speak tonight and that opponents will have another opportunity to comment at the second reading.

(Reporting note: Quotes and attributions come from the city council meeting transcript.)