Church of Scientology hoping South End move will clear up misconceptions
by Kate Lindsmith
Contributing Writer
Wednesday Dec 16, 2009

Timeframe of move remains undecided almost a year after sale of Alexandra Hotel

Having spent more than three decades in the heart of the Back Bay, the Church of Scientology is still working on moving its headquarters to the South End. The church plans to renovate space in the Alexandra Hotel building and a neighboring brownstone, thus expanding its base to nearly twice the size of its current 26,000-square-foot location at 448 Beacon Street. The church bought the space in early 2008 from previous owner, Peter Bakis, for an undisclosed amount, but has yet to move its operation.

The sale came as a surprise, as city officials had expected the building to be converted into condos with retail space on the ground floor. Since the announcement, reaction from some in the South End community and the media has been split, but church officials hope the new location will serve to educate people about Scientology and lead them to draw their own conclusions.

"The main reason it’s so great is because when someone walks in and says, ’What is this place?’ you can see exactly what it is about and answer any questions that you have without making easy mistakes," said Kevin Hall, the church’s Social Reform Director.

Christopher Garrison serves as a minister on weekends and weeknights, delivering a Sunday sermon every week. With 39 years of experience in the church, Garrison said Scientology has motivated him to pursue injustice, learn more about psychology and realize his full physical and emotional potential.

After attending a Cambridge lecture in 1971, Garrison said he found a union of his passions for psychology and eastern religion in Scientology, a religion founded on mental and spiritual guidelines by author L. Ron Hubbard in 1954.


^{"You may have been taught that the mind is a very difficult thing to know about. This is the first principle of Scientology: It is possible to know about the mind, the spirit and life."—L. Ron Hubbard}