We traveled to Clearwater Beach in early December seeking a change of scenery and some warmth. While it has been a very mild late fall in Omaha, a combination of no rain or snow and many days of gray-dreary skies made us want to get away even if it was for only five days. It’s no surprise that around here cases of seasonal depression rise sharply in November and continue until March. Being at the beach, viewing sunsets, and being out and about made us feel better.

I made my first trip to Clearwater Beach (CB) in 1989. Following the advice of one of my colleagues at Rollins College, Janet, Peter, and I drove down and across from our home in Winter Park, Florida to spend a few days at The Palm Pavilion on the beach. It was excellent advice and we have traveled to CB many times since. We enjoy the laid back vibe, restaurants, and proximity to other areas of Florida that we like to explore. Of course, CB has many eye-catching elements that distinguish it from Omaha, including how Santa Claus is depicted. Take a look at these photos. He seems to be having a lot of fun. The dudes up here are so much more serious.

 During our first visits to CB, we noticed some interesting peculiarities in the way people dressed. When we drove through the town of Clearwater, we noticed that there were hundreds of people on the street dressed like sailors, U.S. Navy types outfitted in summer attire. At first, we speculated that there must be a U.S. Navy base in Clearwater. Well, that wasn’t the case. It was a bunch of Scientologists on the streets dressed up like sailors—the mode of kit dreamed up by L. Ron Hubbard in the earlier days of their takeover of Clearwater. While they (the Scientologists) are not outfitted in their dress whites these days, they are still uniformed up and look more like blackjack dealers at some casino down the road. None of them seem to smile.

I’ve written about the Scientologist takeover of Clearwater before and will continue to do so. The church, or cult as some call it, and its members now own 175 or so parcels of land in the city. The purchases have involved deception in many cases, not unlike the manner in which the Ft. Harrison Hotel was bought in 1975 when Scientologists first came to Clearwater. The Ft. Harrison Hotel was purchased by a shell corporation, the United Churches of Florida. The real buyer was the Church of Scientology.

The downtown area of Clearwater has what appears to be many vacant properties. While the area should be the home of a vibrant restaurant and commercial center, the landscape is bleak and almost person-less except for the blackjack dealer – looking people that can be seen scurrying around. The Church of Scientology and its followers have bought a substantial number of the properties and now many of them sit empty, waiting for whatever. I did my regular (when I visit) photoshoot of the place. It’s depressing. It could be so much more.

The latest of the sleight-of-hand land deal attempt occurred in 2022 and was reported in the Tampa Bay Times, April 7, 2023. Arizona developer Rodney Riley revealed a plan to develop 55 parcels of waterfront property into a mixed-use hub of economic activity, so read the proposal. The investigative reporters from the Times and others found that Riley was recruited by wealthy Scientologists to be the public face of the project, thus masking true ownership and control.

 So you might ask, “Why shouldn’t the Church of Scientology be able to buy up property?” The answer is complex in that property owned by the church is removed from the tax rolls. Thus, there is a reduction in revenue for the city of Clearwater and a diminution of resources for development projects.