Salt Lake City: Official Development News Thread - Part 5

[Orlando]

Originally Posted by TMoneySLC

I seem to recall reading someplace that the facade will maintain the plain cement.

That's how it is, and I agree that it doesn't look good.

[delts145]

Shouldn't be too big a surprise where Cowboy Partners is involved.

[ajiuO]

Originally Posted by delts145

Shouldn't be too big a surprise where Cowboy Partners is involved.

I really wish the city would stop granting them building permits. They build garbage. My sister lived in one of their brand new apartments and all the floors were squeaking after less then a year.

[i2theSKY]

I agree with the concerns being expressed about Liberty Skys exterior finish. The exposed concrete has always been my biggest issue with this tower. I've never liked 432 Park Avenue in New York City either due to it's Lego block design and raw concrete finish. To 432's credit the concrete finish is of a higher quality, but still looks unfinished nonetheless. Unlike 432 Park Avenue, Liberty Sky is short and gets lost in the skyline, but still disappointing, especially compared to the edgy glass office tower originally planned for that lot. On the bright side it does add density, and started the ball rolling for future taller, and better looking residential towers.

[JTO]

Originally Posted by Reeder113

Thanks for sharing the photos, RC!

Does anyone know if they're planning on covering the concrete siding on Liberty Sky with some kind of paneling? It'd look awful if kept the way it is, but I can't think of why they haven't at least started covering it by now.

I'm definitely in the minority here, but I don't hate the exposed concrete portion.

[delts145]

Please, someone, tell me that the burying of those brutally ugly utility lines are finally going to begin to be buried at some point soon! Whether it's the City doing it or the property owners or the sharing of responsibility by both. This is supposed to be the grand blvd. entrance to the city. Finally, excellent development is speeding along, from the Post District to State Street, and yet those disgusting lines continue to ruin what should be a good impression at the main entrance of the city's downtown. Can anyone tell me that those lines will at least begin to be buried where these major high end developments are occurring?

Photo By Luke Garrott of BuildingSaltLake.com

[Reeder113]

Originally Posted by TMoneySLC

I seem to recall reading someplace that the facade will maintain the plain cement.

Well I hope they at least blend it in a little better so it doesn't scream "CONCRETE!" I mean, look at all the nasty seams, etc.

[meman]

I think it's pretty stunning the difference in the aesthetics of the new construction being built downtown between local developers and out-of-state developers.

Look how ugly Liberty Sky is and how stunning architecturally, in my opinion, the new Hyatt-Regency Hotel is. I think the new hotel is the best-looking new tower to be built downtown in many years. Liberty sky is being built by a local developer and the Hyatt-Regency is being built by a famous Atlanta developer, Portman Associates, who designed and built the round 70 storey stunning Hyatt Hotel in Atlanta.

By the way, why did Cowboy Associates change from their original, much better looking design for Liberty Sky to the ugly concrete fortress design that it now has??

[Atlas]

I came across this picture of Santiago, Chile today and it reminded me of our discussions about how a huge tower would change SLC's skyline. Well, what do you all think of the Gran Torre Santiago at nearly 1000 ft, towering above a mountain-backed skyline of 400-450 ft towers?

[palmloverking]

Some photographs I got of Salt Lake City from the highway yesterday (08/23/2021). I apologize for the blurriness (no I was not driving), but I love photos that show how the new buildings fit into the skyline from afar.

[Marvland]

Originally Posted by Atlas

I came across this picture of Santiago, Chile today and it reminded me of our discussions about how a huge tower would change SLC's skyline. Well, what do you all think of the Gran Torre Santiago at nearly 1000 ft, towering above a mountain-backed skyline of 400-450 ft towers?

Santiago is one of the better urban city comps for SLC. This is a great view of just how out of place a massive tower would be. It looks terrible and ruins the views of the mountains IMHO.

[palmloverking]

Originally Posted by Atlas

I came across this picture of Santiago, Chile today and it reminded me of our discussions about how a huge tower would change SLC's skyline. Well, what do you all think of the Gran Torre Santiago at nearly 1000 ft, towering above a mountain-backed skyline of 400-450 ft towers

Great question, Atlas. My buddy who lives in Chile is very proud of the Gran Torre, the tallest building in South America. I would absolutely love for an 800-1000ft tower to be built amongst the little guys we have in Salt Lake currently; however, I would not like it if it looked anything like the Gran Torre. ...Strong likely unpopular opinion warning:

These "icon" super tall all-glass skyscrapers are all starting to look like each other and consequently, are becoming very boring.

Devon tower in Oklahoma City, salesforce tower in San Francisco, One World Trade Center in New York City, and Gran Torre, all using the same monotonous blue glass facade tapered towards the top, stand out against the rest of the city, blah blah blah. I'm bored of it. I honestly think that San Francisco and Lower Manhattan both had much more beautiful skylines before those supertall glass towers were built, the new towers just don't agree with their backdrop or the rest of the city at all in my opinion. It's just like those space-needle esque buildings that they put in every single Canadian city, I hate when iconic architecture is copied and pasted all over the world until it becomes a banal occurrence. For the love of god grow some originality if you're going to leave a highly conspicuous mark on a city.


I would love for a tower of that height to built, but with a more ornate facade, stone masonry, metal detailing, columns, pillars, lines, texture. Think of the timeless classical beauty of the Empire State building or the Chrysler building in New York. If you're going to build something that tall, you should make it beautiful and unique.

[Comrade]

Originally Posted by Marvland

Santiago is one of the better urban city comps for SLC. This is a great view of just how out of place a massive tower would be. It looks terrible and ruins the views of the mountains IMHO.

Luckily, most of us aren't asking for a 1,000 foot tower to be built downtown. Lop off 300 feet of that and it'd be fine.

Certainly better than anything under construction or proposed currently - and it wouldn't even be close.

[bob rulz]

Thanks palmlover, I like distance shots like that and the new towers are definitely making a difference in the skyline.

I was just coming down 300 West from the north today and the West Quarter is really starting to stand out from there.

[i2theSKY]

Originally Posted by delts145

Please, someone, tell me that the burying of those brutally ugly utility lines are finally going to begin to be buried at some point soon! Whether it's the City doing it or the property owners or the sharing of responsibility by both. This is supposed to be the grand blvd. entrance to the city. Finally, excellent development is speeding along, from the Post District to State Street, and yet those disgusting lines continue to ruin what should be a good impression at the main entrance of the city's downtown. Can anyone tell me that those lines will at least begin to be buried where these major high end developments are occurring?

I agree the power lines are very unsightly and also wish something could be done. Between the lines and billboards there is clearly some work left to be done to create a grand blvd. Anyone have any info on the grand blvd. idea that surfaced a couple years ago? Hopefully it's still on the table, downtown really needs/deserves a nice entrance.

Originally Posted by Atlas

I came across this picture of Santiago, Chile today and it reminded me of our discussions about how a huge tower would change SLC's skyline. Well, what do you all think of the Gran Torre Santiago at nearly 1000 ft, towering above a mountain-backed skyline of 400-450 ft towers?

Nice looking city but IMO 1000' is a little too much compared to the other towers. The image is a bit exaggerated due to it being in the forefront, but would still be overpowering regardless of location. Throw in a few supporting towers and everything changes. I still think SLC could handle towers in the 600-700' range if centrally located. Nothing wrong with growing into a tallest as long as it's within reason. Look how dominant the COB was when first built. I think it's time for SLC to take it to the next level!

[i2theSKY]

Originally Posted by palmloverking

Great question, Atlas. My buddy who lives in Chile is very proud of the Gran Torre, the tallest building in South America. I would absolutely love for an 800-1000ft tower to be built amongst the little guys we have in Salt Lake currently; however, I would not like it if it looked anything like the Gran Torre. ...Strong likely unpopular opinion warning:

These "icon" super tall all-glass skyscrapers are all starting to look like each other and consequently, are becoming very boring.

Devon tower in Oklahoma City, salesforce tower in San Francisco, One World Trade Center in New York City, and Gran Torre, all using the same monotonous blue glass facade tapered towards the top, stand out against the rest of the city, blah blah blah. I'm bored of it. I honestly think that San Francisco and Lower Manhattan both had much more beautiful skylines before those supertall glass towers were built, the new towers just don't agree with their backdrop or the rest of the city at all in my opinion. It's just like those space-needle esque buildings that they put in every single Canadian city, I hate when iconic architecture is copied and pasted all over the world until it becomes a banal occurrence. For the love of god grow some originality if you're going to leave a highly conspicuous mark on a city.


I would love for a tower of that height to built, but with a more ornate facade, stone masonry, metal detailing, columns, pillars, lines, texture. Think of the timeless classical beauty of the Empire State building or the Chrysler building in New York. If you're going to build something that tall, you should make it beautiful and unique.

Thanks for the pictures! The new towers are doing a nice job of filling in the gaps, now we just need a few standout towers to break the table top effect. I understand what you are saying about the copy and paste effect of the current all-glass signature towers, that said I honestly really like the style of the Gran Torre and a few of the others mentioned. I would personally love a signature (600-700') glass tower with curves in SLC!

[delts145]

Atlas, I was just checking out that tower in Santiago yesterday. My interest was Chile's record as a center of some of the world's strongest earthquakes. It was interesting to see how the developers/engineers compensated for the extreme likelihood of an 8+ quake in the future.

I think palmloverking's photos show just how amazingly improved the SLC skyline will be in the future with just three 500-700 foot additions between 1st and 400 S. as its next step up in height. Then it's on to continuing a skyline buildup extended to 700 So.

Originally Posted by palmloverking

Some photographs I got of Salt Lake City from the highway yesterday (08/23/2021). I apologize for the blurriness (no I was not driving), but I love photos that show how the new buildings fit into the skyline from afar.

[delts145]

Originally Posted by i2theSKY

Thanks for the pictures! The new towers are doing a nice job of filling in the gaps, now we just need a few standout towers to break the table top effect. I understand what you are saying about the copy and paste effect of the current all-glass signature towers, that said I honestly really like the style of the Gran Torre and a few of the others mentioned. I would personally love a signature (600-700') glass tower with curves in SLC!

Very much agree i2theSKY. Two of my favorites would be the Austonian in Austin and the Wilshire Grand here in L.A. Sure, the slick glass curvy towers might be a common trend in many cities, but SLC definitely needs a dose of that trend also. Then I would like to see some focus on tasteful updates of the great classics like New York's Chrysler Tower. Perhaps something also along the line of Charlotte's Bank of America Tower or even Property Reserve's Alexander in Philadelphia. Personally, I like 99 West but like The Alexander even more. We also need to see some more fully articulated Art Deco in Salt Lake. Many of the art deco updates are okay but could be so much more. They lack enough of the classic art deco elements.

Schmoe, Makid or anyone who might be in the know. Have there been any updates on the burying of at least some of those utility lines on 600 South?

[StevenF]

I noticed Business Insider did an article on the top 10 highest percent change in housing prices in the past year and Salt Lake City was on the list. Honestly, it didn't surprise me at all. Housing prices here have been going crazy.

But the real reason I brought this article up is the image of Salt Lake City that they used in the article. It was that infamous 20+ year old image we all love to see news outlets use time and time again.

[Comrade]

Originally Posted by StevenF

I noticed Business Insider did an article on the top 10 highest percent change in housing prices in the past year and Salt Lake City was on the list. Honestly, it didn't surprise me at all. Housing prices here have been going crazy.

But the real reason I brought this article up is the image of Salt Lake City that they used in the article. It was that infamous 20+ year old image we all love to see news outlets use time and time again.

This is what happens when you don't build a signature tower that forces the change.

To the average person, Salt Lake in 2001 looks about the same as Salt Lake in 2021 lol