Clearwater officials cleared the way last week for an 83,000-square-foot entertainment complex downtown, approving street vacations and a city land sale for a privately funded project that backers say will bring visitors and business to the Cleveland Street District.

The proposed EVO Family Entertainment Center would sit at Cleveland Street and Myrtle Avenue and be anchored by a multiplex that backers say has the world’s largest screen. According to the report, Elevate Entertainment Group is developing the project, funded by the Church of Scientology.

The Clearwater City Council voted to vacate Grove Street, Laura Street and an alleyway between North East and North Myrtle Avenues. Officials also approved selling city-owned land in the 100 block of North East Avenue to the project.

Erin Banks, a Church of Scientology spokesperson, said the EVO center is part of a broader downtown effort that represents $200 million in private investment, calling the plan a game-changer. She said EVO is expected to draw one million visitors downtown each year, with 90% coming from outside Pinellas County, and that the street vacations were needed for parking and safety. The Cleveland Street Alliance, a group that includes the church, parishioners and urban planners, said the complex will include a movie theater, bowling and laser tag.

Downtown business owners are on board

Local operators say downtown needs the traffic. Natalya Harrison, owner of Soul Sicilian Fusion, said she is eager to see downtown filled with people. She said concert nights at the BayCare Sound bring thousands of people, but there are too few restaurants, coffee shops and stores to serve them. Jessica Tello, managing partner at Nash Keys Dueling Piano Bar & Restaurant, said she is comfortable with the votes as long as the center actually gets built. She pointed to the storefronts across the street that look good but sit empty.

Questions over public land

The decision was not without critics. Some speakers at the council meeting objected to giving up public rights-of-way. One said losing downtown routes was “a bridge too far” and that once the streets are gone, they are gone for good.

Mayor Bruce Rector said ahead of the vote on the land sale that he would have preferred leasing the property to selling it. He said he wants to be sure it stays open to the public, noting that an owner could convert it into a more exclusive club in the future. Banks rejected that concern, saying no one would invest $50 million in a family entertainment center, especially one involving Dolby Laboratories, only to restrict access.

Council members were told earlier this year that several properties along Cleveland Street are owned by limited liability corporations whose majority investors are Church of Scientology members, and that those buildings were being renovated. Banks said projects are moving forward, and that architects are now preparing construction documents so planning for the entertainment center can be finalized.

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