Sandcastle Retreat Sign on N Osceola Avenue in Clearwater

The Sandcastle Religious Retreat sits at 200 N Osceola Avenue in Clearwater, one of the Church of Scientology's properties in the city's downtown core. Clearwater has served as the church's spiritual headquarters since the late 1970s, when the organization began acquiring buildings under the name "United Churches of Florida" before its ownership became public. The Sandcastle functions as a retreat and event space for staff and members of the Sea Organization, the church's clergy order. Downtown Clearwater today includes numerous Scientology-owned buildings clustered within walking distance of the retreat, a concentration that has made the city the center of the organization's operations worldwide.