SALT LAKE CITY — With the arrival of the new professional hockey team in Utah, city leaders are working quickly to enact plans for the downtown entertainment district surrounding them.
The Utah State Legislature passed a bill to create a special district for an NHL arena and authorized the Salt Lake City Council to levy a .5% sales tax to help pay for the infrastructure and development around it.
So far, team owners Ryan and Ashley Smith have signaled a desire to remodel the Delta Center to host both the Utah Jazz and the team formerly known as the Arizona Coyotes. Ryan Smith suggested as much in a recent interview with FOX 13 Sports following the announcement of the team's move to Utah.
"For the community and for Salt Lake, we have a chance to really re-imagine what downtown Salt Lake looks like and both Ash and I and our partners are on board making that kind of impact. Any time you've got over 80 to 100 nights of guaranteed major league sports downtown, there's a lot you can do with that," he told FOX 13's Jeff Rhineer.
But there will be development beyond that. The legislature's special entertainment district stretches blocks surrounding the Delta Center.
"There is all kinds of opportunity in that immediate area," said Dee Brewer, the executive director of the Downtown Alliance, an organization within the Salt Lake Chamber that serves to advance downtown Salt Lake City interests.
He said he envisions more restaurants, bars and hotels. Negotiations are currently under way between Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County (which owns the Salt Palace and Abravanel Hall) and other downtown stakeholders.
Salt Lake City Council Chair Victoria Petro said she understands a remodeled Delta Center is the likely option for the NHL team. She said she does view the development plans for the entertainment district as a benefit for the state as a whole.
"This is not a stadium in isolation. We know that’s a recipe for disaster," Petro said in an interview with FOX 13 News on Wednesday. "This is imagining what Salt Lake City of the 21st century will be."
The Salt Lake City Council is in the midst of negotiations over what tax dollars will be used to pay for. The legislature set a quick timeline, so the council is accelerating everything.
"There’s so much public infrastructure that’s going to have to go in. And also that’s what we’re negotiating right now. We know we can levy up to .5% sales tax. We have to set the terms for what it can pay for," Petro said.
She said she could see taxpayer dollars paying for infrastructure and offsetting community impacts to places like JapanTown (located across the street from the Delta Center and behind the Salt Palace) or an earmark for some homeless services.
Asked if the council intends to raise the sales tax citywide, Petro told FOX 13 News: "I know that none of us have ever wanted to see the Jazz go. And I know that we understand the responsibility we have right now with this generational opportunity. None of us can say with a clean conscience that we will raise taxes or won’t. But it does feel like the stakes are really high if we choose not to at this point. And so If that’s the way we go, our goal is to have as much public benefit and bang for our buck as we can get."
All of this could also play into Salt Lake City hosting the 2034 Winter Olympics (and The Larry H. Miller Company's plans for a Major League Baseball stadium near the Utah State Fairpark will also be a factor). As part of the development plans, Brewer said there may be additional venues built in the downtown entertainment district.
"I hear from promoters, those who book concerts, that we need a 4,000 to 6,000 seat venue," he said.
Under the Utah State Legislature's rigorous deadlines, Petro said public feedback is critical. She said a lot of constituents she hears from are supportive, but want to see concrete steps and not just the promises of more jobs or benefits.
The Salt Lake City Council has planned a public hearing next month for feedback on the entertainment district with a vote on whether to levy the tax set for July.
"We don’t like breaking laws as legislative bodies so we are going to do our best to make every good faith effort to do everything we can. We are accelerating public feedback and I know that can be frustrating the public to hear, but we are actively asking them to engage with us on the process," she said.
Petro said people can speak up in the general comment period of weekly council meetings or contact their representatives on the Salt Lake City Council individually.
