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SALT LAKE CITY — A hotel nearly caught in the middle of the Smith Entertainment Group's ambitious downtown plans is going through a revitalization of its own.
Radisson Salt Lake City Downtown executives announced Tuesday that they've completed the first phase of a major multimillion-dollar renovation to update all 381 guest rooms and other spaces inside the 15-story building.
All guest rooms were redesigned to balance a "clean Scandinavian look with influences from Salt Lake City's natural landscapes," including interior designs with shapes and hues inspired by the city's landscape, such as its mountains and sunsets, according to a statement from the hotel chain.
The hotel's lobby was also renovated with natural materials that "complement the surrounding landscape, embodying the city's spirit," the hotel says. There's now an executive club lounge for club-level room guests with a "two-sided fireplace for après-ski comfort," as well.
"From our redesigned lobby to the refreshed guest rooms, every detail is meant to offer a warm, welcoming experience," said John Green, the hotel's general manager, in the statement.
The exact cost of renovations was not disclosed.
Some of the changes also reflect what could come to downtown over the next decade. An expanded seasonal patio was tacked onto the Copper Canyon Grill House & Tavern, aiming to serve as a "pre- and post-event venue and neighborhood gathering space" for people attending "Delta Center and other downtown events," according to the hotel.
It follows the same desire Smith Entertainment Group — owners of the NBA's Utah Jazz and the NHL's new Utah Hockey Club — said it would like to see with its vision for the revitalization. zone. Its revitalization plan would drastically alter the Salt Palace Convention Center, which neighbors the hotel. It would essentially cut the building in half, reopening 100 South as a walkable plaza with more room for downtown flow from City Creek Center to the Delta Center.
"So much of this investment will be going into the overall experience downtown," said Mike Maughan, the company's executive and principal on the downtown project, in June.
The company's plans were approved by Salt Lake City in a partnership agreement between the two sides, which is now being reviewed by a state commission before it is finalized. It also requires an additional agreement with Salt Lake County leaders before the project moves forward.
While that plays out, so will additional work on the Radisson Salt Lake City Downtown. A second phase of renovation will focus on other amenities, including an update to the hotel's pool and hot tub areas while completing a new coffee shop that will join the Copper Canyon Grill House & Tavern.
Those changes are expected to be completed by early next year.
The hotel, completed in 1985, went through a previous renovation projection in 2012 largely to update the same spaces that went through renovations this year. Another renovation was completed in 2019.
It's not uncommon for hotels to undergo renovations regularly. The commercial real estate company JLL explained in 2022 that hotels often complete "full-scale renovations" a little more than every decade with smaller renovations in between largely to "ensure standardization and consistency" across hotel brands.
It added that many of the renovations were on the cusp of picking back up by late 2022 as hotels began to recover from impacts to business caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
