Salt Lake City: Official Development News Thread - Part 5

[Makid]

Originally Posted by RC14

What's cool about that is that we did it without building any suburban sprawl. Cities like Saratoga Springs still have/had allot of empty land to build on. This proves that people want to live in the city and we can provide housing for them.

It could be even better, the Kem Gardner Policy Institute puts the number of residents in SLC at 10K higher at 227,967.

I do think we are still a little bit away from another tower or 2 starting downtown but I do believe they are coming.

[bob rulz]

I don't know if Kem Gardner or the Census has "better" estimates but I definitely think 227k seems a bit high.

[delts145]

Has construction started on either of the two housing complexes along 700 east between 400 So. and Trolley Sq?

Developers pitch college student housing complex at OfficeMax site along 400 South
by Jacob Scholl | May 20, 2025 - https://buildingsaltlake.com/developers-...along-400-south/?ct=t(RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN

Developers want to cater a massive redevelopment in Salt Lake City’s East Central neighborhood to college students, hoping that market will occupy an apartment complex consisting of nearly two acres of land along 400 South. In total, the complex could hold 696 beds if all units are leased out.

The project — located at 410 South 900 East and dubbed Chapter SLC in plans submitted to Salt Lake City — includes 252 units of housing along one of the city’s busiest streets. Submitted plans call for a mix of studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and four-bedroom apartments. The development’s total density would be around 129 units per acre...

...The development would also be just feet from the 900 East stop along the TRAX Red Line, which has multiple stops around the U. The site currently includes a shuttered OfficeMax and a large surface parking lot.

The six-story building would include a rooftop pool, two internal courtyards, residential walk-up units and public space on the ground floor, including a pedestrian plaza space and space for a cafe, according to plans submitted to the city. The plans also show space for murals on the building’s south side...

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[freeshavocado]

Originally Posted by delts145

Has construction started on either of the two housing complexes along 700 east between 400 So. and Trolley Sq?

A concrete core (stairwell? elevator shaft?) has risen on one of the sites. Hard to tell from the road, but I'm guessing it's the northern site because demolition hasn't completed on the parking garage on the southern site and hasn't even begun on the old office building.

[Atlas]

I like all of the student-focused housing going up on the Red Line. Seems long overdue and a much better way of bringing a "college town" atmosphere to the area than building a million new dorms on campus.

[Orlando]

/\/\/\ agreed! It would be great it they could also develop that kind of housing near all the restaurants up on 13th east.

Also, who's the developer listed in the BSL article?

[rockies]

Originally Posted by Orlando

/\/\/\ agreed! It would be great it they could also develop that kind of housing near all the restaurants up on 13th east.

Also, who's the developer listed in the BSL article?

Project Details
41 studios
20 one-bedrooms
65 two-bedrooms
126 four-bedrooms
252 total

Development Details
Land Owner: RB Salt Lake LLC
Developer: Cole West
Surveyor: Layton Surveys
Architect/Landscape Architect: Lamar Johnson Collaborative
Civil Engineer: Hunt Day

[Comrade]

Maybe I'm out to lunch (I am a lot of the time lmao) but I didn't realize the plan was to actually demo the historic Pickle Co building. :/

https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news...t-lake-citys-granary-district-demolished

[bob rulz]

Yeah how it all went down feels unfortunate. I am cautiously optimistic that they will rebuild it as they claim, since Blaser has a good track record. It definitely feels shady though.

[UTPlanner]

It was the stated goal of the developer to retain and redevelop as much of the building as possible. It was likely one of the reasons that the Planning Commission supported the project and the RDA granted a loan which because of the demolition both the approvals and loan are likely at risk. The staff report makes that pretty clear.

https://www.slcdocs.com/Planning/Plannin...nning%20Commission%20Staff%20Report..pdf

[JTO]

Originally Posted by UTPlanner

It was the stated goal of the developer to retain and redevelop as much of the building as possible. It was likely one of the reasons that the Planning Commission supported the project and the RDA granted a loan which because of the demolition both the approvals and loan are likely at risk. The staff report makes that pretty clear.

https://www.slcdocs.com/Planning/Plannin...nning%20Commission%20Staff%20Report..pdf

I dunno. If the commission actually held developers accountable we wouldn't still have a giant dirt pit at 144 S Main IMO.

[cole.618]

Trolley North Apartments






Pickle building demo

[bob rulz]

Originally Posted by JTO

I dunno. If the commission actually held developers accountable we wouldn't still have a giant dirt pit at 144 S Main IMO.

I mean what can you do? Guarantee that they have financials secured before the commission approves a project?

[freeshavocado]

Re: Trolley North, isn't it unusual for a project to begin construction before demolition of the site is complete? That office building and parking structure will need to be removed for the project to proceed.

https://bkvgroup.com/projects/trolley-square/

[delts145]

Originally Posted by cole.618

Trolley North Apartments

Originally Posted by freeshavocado

Re: Trolley North, isn't it unusual for a project to begin construction before demolition of the site is complete? That office building and parking structure will need to be removed for the project to proceed.

https://bkvgroup.com/projects/trolley-square/

I seem to remember there being a discussion about a redo of those structures and incorporating them into the overall project. Not sure if I'm remembering that correctly. Anyway, thanks Cole,618 for grabbing a couple of shots of the construction. Excited to see this one get off the ground. This and the one to the north on the corner of 4th So. and 7th E. will really add some great infill and density to the area. Especially a big help to the vitality of Trolley Sq. foot traffic when combined with the Trolley Sq. south parking lot residential and the student housing at 400 So. and 900 East getting off the ground.

https://bkvgroup.com/projects/trolley-square/

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[delts145]

Photo Bump

Downtown Update - Astra Mural Project

Originally Posted by Reeder113

Nice shot of Astra from KSL

https://www.ksl.com/article/51312404/these-were-utahs-10-fastest-growing-cities-in-2024-

Originally Posted by dakben

It's not quite done. But it looks like this:

Photo By Dakben

May 14, 2025

Photos By Bryce Tucker for the Deseret News - https://www.ksl.com/article/51312089/how...t-building-with-the-states-largest-mural

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[Rileybo]

Happy summer, y’all. Stay cool, don’t let the arsenic choke you.

[bob rulz]

Man that north side of Astra is so ugly.

[Orlando]

Just saw this on Facebook, and I thought it might be of interest to those of you on here...

[airhero]

Originally Posted by bob rulz

I don't think this is really like 200 W because this will keep pedestrian traffic above ground. I'm definitely still skeptical of this proposal though, as I am with any UDOT and state-sponsored proposal.

Yeah fair point. And it's a plaza on top, not part of a convention center, so probably won't be so imposing. I'm biased by my desire to solve the 300 W problem for all of downtown, not just a block. Admittedly if you wanted to downgrade 300 West's designation but keep traffic flowing in a way that appeases UDOT, you would probably need to add more ingress/egress from I-15, which would cost way more than 300 million dollars, albeit for a far more comprehensive project.