Ground Broken For New 25-Story Hotel Near Salt Palace
Jan 10, 2020, 9:41 PM
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – After years of discussing expectations and planning, community leaders broke ground on a 25-story hotel at the Salt Palace Convention Center in downtown Salt Lake City.
At the Friday ceremony, state, county and city leaders said they believe the new hotel will help lure bigger conventions to town.
The Salt Lake City skyline has seen a lot of prosperous change in the last decade and new construction continues to flourish.
The new 700-bed convention center hotel will be one of the biggest projects in the city center in recent years.
“This has been a long time coming, but the day is finally here,” said Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson.
After decades of discussion and planning, the $377 million Hyatt Regency Salt Lake City will be built right into the footprint of the convention center.
“This has been a long time coming. But, the day is finally here.” Community leaders break ground on the Hyatt Regency Salt Lake City. Coming up at 5&6 @KSL5TV why the convention center hotel is critical right now. @SLCoGov @JennyWilsonUT @SLCoRegionalDev #ksltv @kslnewsradio pic.twitter.com/SkpXtWHm9x
— Jed Boal (@jedboal) January 10, 2020
Atlanta-based developer, Portman Holdings, has been tasked with the project.
“The bigger conventions really need the accessibility of a major hotel right next door,” said Wilson. “In this case, no one will even have to put on a raincoat to move from the hotel into the convention facility.”
Business leaders see the connected hotel as a critical move in competing for major conventions. Without a hotel in such close proximity to the Salt Palace, city leaders said Salt Lake City has lost out on conventions in the past.
“What we’re doing here in the first week of this new year may very well be the most important thing that we do economically in the state of Utah all year,” said Ben Hart, deputy director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.
On average, convention visitors spend $1,000 each. Conventions also give the city and state a chance to show off.
“It allows us to welcome the world, and bring the best minds and innovators into our community, to fall in love with this community, and then to invest and bring prosperity,” said Blake Thomas, director of Salt Lake County Economic Development.
Elsewhere in the city, construction has already begun at Temple Square for the next four years. The Salt Lake Temple and the surrounding grounds will undergo major renovations.
At 95 State Street, a 24-story office building is under construction. One block south, a 24-story residential skyrise called Liberty Sky. Another block south of that, a 14-story mixed-use residential development is getting started.
“When I meet with local employers, their biggest issue is we need more talent, we need space for it and I think right now you’re seeing the surge of (growth) to accommodate that demand in our market,” said Thomas.
Demolition at the Salt Palace starts Monday. Over the next 32 months, the convention center will be a bustling construction zone, creating hundreds of jobs.
The hotel is expected to open October 2022.
