Super Power Building

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Super Power Building

Scientology's Super Power Building
Basic information
Location Clearwater, Florida
Affiliation Scientology
Leadership Religious Technology Center
Website New Church of Scientology Building in Clearwater, Florida
Architectural description
Architectural style Mediterranean Revival[1]
Completed 2011
Construction cost USD$50,000,000 (as of March 2009)[2]
Specifications
Capacity 889 rooms, 42 bathrooms

The Super Power Building is an edifice in Clearwater, Florida, the Church of Scientology's largest property in the city. Due to a work stoppage of several years, it was left only partially built, resulting in criticism of the structure as an "eyesore" by ranking city officials. The high-rise complex, which occupies an entire block at 215 South Fort Harrison Avenue, was planned to be topped with a 15-story tower surmounted by a bronze Scientology cross to be visible over a wide area of Clearwater. Construction began in 1998, was halted in 2003, and was ultimately resumed to reach substantial completion during 2011.

At 127,000 square feet (11,800 m2), the building is the largest commercial building in Clearwater. It was originally budgeted to cost $24 million, but the cost has more than doubled to an estimated $50 million after repeated redesign of the interior.[2][3] According to the building plans, the Super Power Building will feature a grand lobby lined with sculptures depicting aspects of Scientology; theaters for training and introductory films; a museum honoring the Sea Org; and a separate museum honoring Scientology's founder, L. Ron Hubbard. The sixth floor will house an indoor running track for Scientologists undergoing the controversial Purification Rundown detoxification program.[4] The Mediterranean Revival-style building will also contain a bookstore, a library, and hundreds of course and study rooms; with a total of 889 rooms, 447 windows, and 42 bathrooms, plus an 1,140-seat dining room and two kitchens. A 124-foot (38 m) bridge connects the Super Power Building to the Scientology-owned Fort Harrison Hotel on the other side of S. Fort Harrison Avenue.[1]

Contents

[edit] Purpose and funding

The purpose of the Super Power Building has been stated (see below) as providing a dedicated center for delivering the Super Power Rundown, a high-level Scientology training course that has not yet been released. The Super Power Rundown was described by Scientology's founder, and science fiction writer, L. Ron Hubbard, as:

"A super fantastic, but confidential series of rundowns that can be done on anybody whether Dn [Dianetics] Clear or not that puts the person into fantastic shape unleashing Super Power of a thetan. This means that puts Scientologists into a new realm of ability enabling them to create a new world. It puts world Clearing within reach of the future. This is a parallel rundown to Power in Saint Hill which is taken by the Dn Clear. It consists of 12 separate high power rundowns which are brand new and enter realms of the tech never before approached. Power is still very much in use on the Grade Chart but is for those who didn't go Clear on Dn." [5]

Special training equipment for delivering Super Power courses[6]

According to the Church of Scientology, the building will contain specially developed equipment which "expand[s] on technology developed by NASA to train astronauts" designed to exercise and enhance an individual's 57 "perceptics" (senses).[6] These machines will include such things as an antigravity simulator, a gyroscope-like apparatus that spins a person around while blindfolded to improve perception of compass direction, and a video screen that moves forward and backward while flashing images to hone a viewer's ability to identify subliminal messages.[7]

The building is being funded through a "Super Power Expansion Project." A fund-raising letter sent to Scientologists in March 2002 described the purpose of the project

Contributions to the project are on a sliding scale with "titles" that are fancied among adherents awarded as prizes according to the level of donations. These range from the starting level, "Flag Supporter" (a $1,000 donation), to the mid-ranking "Master Builder of Merit" ($500,000) and so on up to the "Legion of OT Meritorious" ($7,500,000).[8] According to a Scientology magazine published in September 2007, Scientologist actress Kirstie Alley is ranked as a "Founding Member" of the project, indicating a $250,000 donation.[9][10] The actress Catherine Bell has also contributed and is ranked as a "Double Cornerstone Member" (twice the normal "cornerstone" donation of $35,000 - i.e. $70,000).[11] The project's July 2004 "Cornerstone Newsletter" lists 1,218 members contributing a total of just under $89 million.[12]; by 2007, the total had risen to over $142 million.[13] Scientologists contributing to the project are given a number of benefits depending on the level of their contributions, including "gold validation pins" and "Super Power rings", "exclusive membership to the Key Contributor Lounge in the new mecca building created specially for these stellar contributors", and fee reductions or priority status for Super Power courses.[14]

[edit] Project history

Northwest corner view of the Super Power Building

Plans for the Super Power Building project were unveiled in 1993 by the Los Angeles-based Church of Scientology Religious Trust. The site was formerly occupied by the Gray Moss Inn, a turn-of-the-century building across the street from the Scientology-owned Fort Harrison Hotel. The inn had stood empty since being damaged in a 1989 arson fire and the Church of Scientology acquired the land in 1991 after it had been purchased by local property developer Terence J. McCarthy, the owner of T.J.M. Holding and president of Graymoss, Inc.[15]

The architectural firm HOK was hired to deliver the project.[1] Construction officially began by SKANSKA USA in November 1998 and was slated for completion by late 2003. However, work was reported to have fallen well behind schedule and stopped in 2003. The cost of construction was reported to have more than doubled due to rises in the price of steel and labor,[16] with the Church repeatedly issuing fundraising requests to its members. The revised cost was not disclosed but in 2000 it was reported that the cost had risen from the initial estimate of $24 million to $45 million,[4] and a doubling of this figure would put the total cost at over $90 million. The Church also stated that the building had undergone two major redesigns due to its requirement to "keep pace with the quality of construction at other new facilities". In mid-February 2006, the Church hired Gensler, the world's largest architectural firm, to take over the project.[17]

The erratic progress of the project prompted criticism from local government officials and residents. In 2005, the city's code enforcement board ordered the exterior, including landscaping and sidewalks, to be completed by early summer. Frank Hibbard, the Mayor of Clearwater, noted that "the building had become an eyesore, surrounded by dirt and a chain-link fence." [17] The deadline was not met and daily fines of $250 — totalling over $40,000 by the end of 2006 — were levied against the Church.[18]

A Church spokesman announced in April 2006 that the building would be completed by the end of 2007 [19] but this date has slipped repeatedly. Press reports at the time indicated that the Church was aiming to complete the building by March 2008. In November 2006 the city of Clearwater served the Church with a development order to complete the exterior of the building.[18] As of mid-December 2006 construction had not yet resumed [20] and Church officials indicated that "mid 2008" was now the target date.[18] The prolonged delay has adversely impacted other proposed developments that intended to capitalize on the promised increased economic activity from Scientologists visiting Clearwater.[21] Church officials have offered no public explanation of the delays other than "a recurring need to revise interior design schemes in an effort to get it just right."[22] As of late March 2009, work on the building was still at a standstill; the daily fines levied by the city then totaled $245,000. As of July 2009, construction work had restarted on the site. After completion of renovation of the nearby Fort Harrison Hotel, construction activity had resumed on the building, including construction signs posted by the contractors and a construction lift installed on site. Scientology officials have stated that the building has cost about $40 million so far and completing the interior is expected to increase the total cost to $50 million. No new completion dates have been announced, but "as soon as we get the go-ahead from the city, we'll begin".[2]

In September 2009, Church spokesperson Peter Mansell estimated the Super Power Building would be ready for occupancy by fall of 2010.[23] This date passed without any resumption of work on the site.

As of June 2011, St. Petersburg Times reports the building has passed inspection and its Certificate of Occupancy has been obtained. The church is expected to seek a reduction in the $450,000 fine at the Code Enforcement Board's July or August meeting. Church spokeswoman Pat Harney said, "We are simply following the standard procedures to close out any remaining permit issues." According to city assistant planning director Gina Clayton, since 2000 the church has paid the city, county and state $2.2 million in permit, plan review, impact and other fees. The church said its redesigns needed time. "We build for eternity," former spokesman Ben Shaw told the Times. "When we do that, we want it perfect." The church will host a ribbon-cutting and dedication ceremony there later this year.[24]

The church asked the city to reduce its fine by 90 percent, to reflect its "good faith" effort in bringing the building to code, but the city's resident-led Code Enforcement Board, which has a record of leniency and decimating fines, voted unanimously to keep the fines mostly untouched, saying the church had long ignored the city's rules.[25]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c O'Neill, Deborah (2002-07-28). "Unmistakable presence". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/2002/07/28/NorthPinellas/Unmistakable_presence.shtml. 
  2. ^ a b c Brassfield, Mike (2009-03-22). "Scientology church gives Clearwater's Fort Harrison Hotel a $40M makeover". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.tampabay.com/news/religion/article986057.ece. Retrieved 2009-03-22. 
  3. ^ Wallsten, Peter (1995-12-23). "Scientologists call for builders". St. Petersburg Times. 
  4. ^ a b Tobin, Thomas (2000-05-29). "Scientology's building heads upward". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/News/032900/NorthPinellas/Scientology_s_buildin.shtml. 
  5. ^ Dianetics and Scientology Technical Dictionary, p. 413. Bridge Publications, 1989
  6. ^ a b "An entirely new universe - ideal in every detail", Source magazine, issue 194, September 2007, pp. 40-41. According to the Scientology Handbook, the "perceptics" are: "Time, Sight; Taste, Color, Depth; Solidity (barriers); Relative sizes (external); Sound; Pitch; Tone; Volume; Rhythm; Smell; Touch (pressure, friction, heat or cold and oiliness); Personal emotion; Endocrine states; Awareness of awareness; Personal size; Organic sensation (including hunger); Heartbeat; Blood circulation; Cellular and bacterial position; Gravitic (self and other weights); Motion of self; Motion (exterior); Body position; Joint position; Internal temperature; External temperature; Balance; Muscular tension; Saline content of self (body); Fields/magnetic; Time track motion; Physical energy (personal weariness, etc.); Self-determinism; Moisture (self); Sound direction; Emotional state of other organs; Personal position on the tone scale; Affinity (self and others); Communication (self and others); Reality (self and others); Emotional state of groups; Compass direction; Level of consciousness; Pain; Perception of conclusions (past and present); Perception of computation (past and present); Perception of imagination (past and present); Perception of having perceived (past and present); Awareness of not knowing; Awareness of importance, unimportance; Awareness of others; Awareness of location and placement (masses, spaces and location itself); Perception of appetite; Kinesthesia"
  7. ^ Farley, Robert (2006-06-06). "Scientology nearly ready to unveil Super Power". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/2006/05/06/news_pf/Tampabay/Scientology_nearly_re.shtml. 
  8. ^ "Super Power Expansion Project Gift Form". Church of Scientology Religious Trust, 2006
  9. ^ Friedman, Roger (2008-02-05). "Caroline Kennedy's House Divided". FOXNews.com. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,328370,00.html. 
  10. ^ "FLAG Experience". Source Magazine, issue 193, Pages 36-37, September 2007
  11. ^ "People at Flag". Source Magazine, Issue 196, December 2007, pages 24-25
  12. ^ "Cornerstone Newsletter", Church of Scientology Religious Trust, July 2004
  13. ^ "Cornerstone Newsletter", Church of Scientology Religious Trust, undated but published 2007
  14. ^ "Super Power Expansion Project Statuses and Benefits", Church of Scientology Religious Trust, 2007
  15. ^ Garcia, Wayne (1993-05-18). "Scientologists plan to build auditorium". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.lermanet2.com/scientologynews/sptimes/sptimes-spbuilding-051893.htm. 
  16. ^ Farley, Robert (2004-12-20). "Clearwater edifice sits empty, but why?". St. Petersburg Times. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/sptimes/access/768830161.html?MAC=09c4065dc26938d4a4fbb09ee828baa8&did=768830161&FMT=FT&FMTS=CITE:FT&dids=768830161:768830161:&date=Dec+20%2C+2004&author=ROBERT+FARLEY&pub=St.+Petersburg+Times&printformat=&desc=Clearwater+edifice+sits+empty%2C+but+why%3F. 
  17. ^ a b Farley, Robert (2006-04-26). "Scientology expands at home". St. Petersburg Times. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/sptimes/access/1027569201.html?dids=1027569201:1027569201&FMT=FT&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Apr+26%2C+2006&author=ROBERT+FARLEY&pub=St.+Petersburg+Times&edition=&startpage=1.A&desc=Scientology+expands+at+home. 
  18. ^ a b c Farley, Robert (2006-12-23). "Still on church's drawing board". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/2006/12/23/Tampabay/Still_on_church_s_dra.shtml. 
  19. ^ Farley, Robert (2006-08-07). "Plans for expansion". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/2006/08/07/Pasco/Plans_for_expansion.shtml. 
  20. ^ Farley, Robert (2006-12-17). "Scientology church seeks more units for hotel". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/2006/12/17/Northpinellas/Scientology_church_se.shtml. 
  21. ^ Meinhardt, Jane (2006-08-04). "Scientology postponement creates trickle-down effect". Tampa Bay Business Journal. http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2006/08/07/story1.html. 
  22. ^ Fries, Jacob H. (2007-09-29). "Scientology has big plans for landmark". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/2007/09/29/news_pf/Northpinellas/Scientology_has_big_p.shtml. 
  23. ^ Douglas, Mark (2009-09-11). "Scientology, others let code fines mount in Clearwater". Tampa Bay Online. http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/sep/11/scientology-others-let-code-fines-mount-clearwater/news-breaking/. Retrieved 2009-12-18. 
  24. ^ http://www.tampabay.com/news/localgovernment/will-clearwater-press-scientology-to-pay-450000-fine-in-full/1174576
  25. ^ http://www.tampabay.com/news/localgovernment/clearwater-fines-scientology-413500/1187852

[edit] External links

Portal icon Scientology portal

Coordinates: 27°57′48″N 82°47′57″W / 27.963403°N 82.799124°W / 27.963403; -82.799124

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