Sky Bridge passes Salt Lake City Planning Commission

It took one year and 13 meetings to convince the Salt Lake City Planning Commission that a heated, enclosed, private, sky bridge connecting the two main halves of the City Creek Center, is a passable idea. Attending only two of these meetings myself, I think in the end the Commissioners were simply beaten by the very polished, convincing, determined "men in black" from Taubman and CCRI.

The Salt Lake City Planning Commissioners showed great determination and insight in their recommendations for improving many elements of the project including:

• realignment of anchors to be less mall-like(which limited the number of anchors to two instead of three (eliminating plans for Dillards)
  



• Realignment of the entrance to buildings on Main Street to shift focus on Main Street rather than the private streets of Richard's Street and Regence Street. This eliminated the windowless backsides which would have been facing Main Street.
  



• creation of several opportunities for outdoor restaurants near the South-end of Main Street drawing customers to walk more North to South than just East to West.
  



• By using trees and shrubs as natural barriers around sidewalks and offering street cafes on Main Street, (as suggested by the commission) Emphasis remains on Main Street as focal point and gathering area, around the Trax Stop, just before South Temple.
  

Thanks to the Commissioners the project went from very bad to almost very good, over the past year. However, the commissioners didn't have the guts to go all the way. If the sky bridge had been eliminated and taken completely off the table. This would have forced CCRI to rethink the entire last bad idea in their plans: the second level of retail.

Every great city I've traveled to has multi-level restaurants, bookstores, boutiques, I've even been to a multi-level electronics store in downtown Munich. Two levels of retail will make the City Creek Center form fitted to become a corporate chain store haven. They are catering to the tenants wishes rather than vice-versa.

Obviously, CCRI wants to attract high quality tenants. However, when you have a tourist destination that attracts 7 million visitors every year, right across the street, why go to over-extended lengths to attract corporate America?

No doubt every chain store wants to be where the people are already, and this is a no-brainer downtown across from the Temple and world headquarters of the most rapidly growing Church in America. If City Creek eliminated the second level of retail it would make the retail space less concentrated. This would work in favor to downtown as a whole. Pedestrians would be required to walk greater distances to go to stores they wish to shop and this way shoppers would be much more likely to travel to the South-end of Main Street or to Gateway. Taubman Company representative, Ron Loch's assertion that the center needs attain a "critical mass of retail" in order to attract the number of visitors they need, is a ridiculous assertion. All a retail developments require is critical appeal which comes from street life, currently offered by Gateway.

The New Main Street

Why has Gateway been such a success? Because Gateway was built to provide exactly what Main Street was lacking--street life. Main Street was void of street life because the malls quickly eliminated life on the street when the ZCMI Center was built followed by the Crossroads Mall.

In other words Gateway was a correction to the mistake of the malls. Gateway attracts visitors in the freezing cold and snow. Gateway offers Salt Lake City residents a synthetic Main Street. "Synthetic" because there are some obvious flaws in Gateway, mainly because it is a single development, its main function: to monopolize the buying public. This limits the economic opportunity and local dynamics that would naturally occur on authentic streets or public common areas. Gateway is private and can set their own private property laws and lease their spaces to tenants that offer the most potential for long-term stability, which end up being nearly all corporate chain stores.

What is in store for Gateway after City Creek is finished?

The City Creek Center will draw thousands of visitors from Gateway. Gateway and the housing around Gateway will suffer as a result. Commissioners doubt this prospect because they believe Gateway can be supported by all the current and future residents who live in and around Gateway. City Creek will not cause Gateway to collapse as the malls caused the South-end of Main Street did. Gateway has too many draws including the Megaplex Theatre, the Clark Planetarium and the businesses that have located there including the Tribune and most recently Fidelity Investments.

However, the "critical mass" of retail Loch is suggesting City Creek provide, is "essential" for Taubman because they realize they are competing against Gateway in the effort to monopolize the buying public. Taubman doesn't want shoppers to have any reason to venture into Gateway for shopping. City Creek will be the more popular draw and I believe it is very likely many corporate tenants will move from Gateway to City Creek.

One only need notice the massive crowds that gather at Christmas to see the lights at Temple Square, in the freezing cold. Or the huge crowds that come from all over the world to attend General Conference. These people all make a special trip to Gateway to shop. A "critical mass" of retail at City Creek will completely eliminate this need.

Like Kathleen Hill stated in her determined anti-sky bridge crusade: "Utahns are a hearty people. they aren't afraid of the cold." Loch's assertion that a critical mass of retail is required, is a statement coming from a man whose judgment is clouded by his corporate empire building mind-set.
Visitors to Temple Square would love to have a reason to venture down Main Street, Richad's Street and Regence Street. All there need be is some beauty and natural street life-- someone selling some hot chocolate and roasted almonds on a cold night. It is a preposterous argument for him to try to have us believe a McDonalds and Gap are the key elements for creating a tourist destination out of City Creek.
See Utah Stories City Creek Center Stories here