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Ogden’s old Wonder Bread factory about to embark on facelift

Posted at 6:19 PM, Apr 11, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-12 09:52:12-04

OGDEN, Utah – Condo’s, rental units and office buildings will soon pop up in Ogden’s downtown area near the old Wonder Bread factory.

The building, which sits on the south side of 25th Street in Ogden, has been vacant for about five years now. Ogden city leaders want to breathe new life into it, in hopes that more people will live and work in the downtown area.

Many locals were disappointed when Hostess shut down operations in 2012 after filing for bankruptcy.

“It's sad to see it go,” said Tom Christopulos, director of Community and Economic Development for the city of Ogden.

The Ogden native is spearheading the revitalization of that property and others surrounding it between Lincoln and Grant avenues.

“Our goal has been trying to bring more and more people to live in an urban setting,” said Christopulos. “Some of this will be owned housing, some of it will be apartments for rent, and some of it will be office condos. Some of them will be office rent.”

With a new urban feel, city planners will also make room for new parking facilities.

“Parking is starting to be a problem. 10 years ago we never thought it would have been a problem,” said Christopulos.

The city is working to preserve a lot of historical elements. The old historical Brown Building will stay intact.

“Brown ice cream was kind of the first notable building on there,” said Christopulos.

Leaders are working with a Salt Lake City based architectural firm, FFKR Architects, on the renderings. City leaders stress these are preliminary renderings. But they believe they’re on the right track.

“So far the public input has been really positive, so we'll see what happens,” said Christopulos.

The $100 million plus project will be done in four phases.

“My hope is that we're gonna be able to start this first phase here within the next 3 years,” said Christopulos.

The timeline will be determined by the results of a feasibility study. City planners will use the information along with public input to determine the best uses, and design of the space.

Check out the renderings design.