James Uthmeier sides with the Church of Scientology in land dispute
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This is not the first time Uthmeier has sided with the Church of Scientology.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has responded to questions from Clearwater City Council member David Allbritton seeking clarification over who owns land under a portions of South Garden Avenue in downtown Clearwater and whether the Church of Scientology can petition to vacate the right-of-way without paying fair market value for it.
The letter fully sides with the Church, finding that the Church owns the land because it was dedicated to the city of Clearwater through common law dedication and, because the Church owns the abutting land, it retained the title to land under Garden Avenue. Additionally, the letter notes the Church can petition to vacate the right-of-way without paying full market value.
Uthmeier’s interpretation is based on a number of citations, including legal precedent in Lehman v. Cocoanut Bayou Ass’n. Inc.; Robbins v. White; Roe v. Kendrick; City of Palmetto v. Katsch; and Pelican Creek Homeowners v. Pulverenti.
“Given that the Church possesses full title to the land underlying Garden Avenue, it necessarily follows that the Church may petition to vacate that same section of Garden Avenue without paying fair market value for it,” Uthmeier concluded in the letter. “As a previous Attorney General Opinion explained, ‘a municipality possesses neither statutory nor constitutional authority to exact payment for or otherwise interfere with the property rights of landowners whose property abuts a public street as conditions to or in exchange for the exercise of its power to vacate streets no longer required for public use.’”
This is not the first time Uthmeier has sided with the Church of Scientology in the Clearwater land dispute.
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