NewsLocal News

Actions

Utah’s second biggest city is finally getting a real downtown

Posted at 6:03 PM, Oct 09, 2019
and last updated 2019-10-10 08:52:14-04

WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah — Where is downtown West Valley City?

West Valley City didn’t incorporate until 1980, and it was immediately the third biggest city in the state.

By the 1990 census, West Valley City leapfrogged Provo to be Utah’s second-largest metropolis, and it has held the title ever since.

That kind of history didn’t lead to the natural evolution of a central hub, or downtown, but in the last decade city leaders purchased forty acres at 3500 South and I-215 and they’ve deliberately recruited developers to form a downtown core they’re calling Fairbourn Station.

Since then:

  • Valley Fair Mall was renovated, with a Megaplex Theater and several chain stores,
  • A Costco Opened in the southeast corner of Faribourn,
  • An Embassy Suites Hotel opened on the northwest end of the district,
  • A new police headquarters and a giant high-rise office tower are set to open in the next month or so,
  • And a Springhill Suites Hotel is scheduled to open in November of 2020.

The man heading up the new hotel project for PEG Companies, Todd Stone, says proximity to Salt Lake City International Airport and the planned inland port make the location an easy sell.

“West Valley City is actually a fantastic place for a hotel,” Stone said.

Mayor Ron Bigelow says the city has been an undiscovered gem for successful businesses for years.

“When they come they say, ‘man we're glad we came,’” said Bigelow.