Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — It appears Salt Lake City is ready to decide on whether to finalize its agreement with Smith Entertainment Group on a partnership agreement and sales tax increase that would facilitate major changes to and around the Delta Center.
The Salt Lake City Council on Friday released its tentative agenda for Tuesday meetings, which includes potential votes on a resolution to accept the final participation agreement, project area and project participant designation, as well as an ordinance approving a 0.5% citywide sales tax increase.
Barring any last-minute changes, both are scheduled to follow a third public hearing at the start of the meeting (7 p.m. at the Salt Lake City and County Building, 451 S. State). City leaders will also be updated on everything during a work session Tuesday afternoon.
Salt Lake City Council members voted in July on a tentative agreement to advance the project.
The update comes after Salt Lake City Council members received a memo from Salt Lake City Attorney Katie Lewis Thursday requesting a final briefing before a potential vote, along with some final tweaks to the agreement, some of which reflect feedback from the NBA and NHL.
She wrote that the Smith Entertainment Group and SEG Real Estate — an entity added to the agreement — should have lease agreements with Salt Lake County and the Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City by July 1 next year. That's also the deadline for Smith to get $900 million from bond issuers for projects including the renovation of the Delta Center to accommodate both the Utah Jazz and the Utah Hockey Club.
Another adjustment clarifies that Smith Entertainment Company's "responsibility to repay bonds is limited to the proceeds" of the 0.5% sales tax increase. The proposed ordinance adopting the 0.5% sales tax for the next 30 years notes that sales tax funds can be used to remodel the Delta Center and other projects within the zone that improve downtown.
Smith Entertainment Group expects to begin its multiyear renovation of the Delta Center in 2025 and complete it in phases by October 2027, but another adjustment handles concerns over any potential construction delays.
The Jazz and Utah Hockey Club could temporarily play at an alternate site without violating a clause forcing the teams to play every home game at the Delta Center if renovation "renders the arena unusable."
The company is required to use "commercially reasonable efforts to identify an alternate site with Salt Lake City boundaries" in this scenario. Lewis previously explained there would be a provision allowing one-off games at alternate sites, in case Salt Lake City is ever selected to host an event like the NHL Winter Classic.
Other details wouldn't change. For example, Salt Lake City is still slated to receive money collected from a new ticket fee during Delta Center events that could go toward projects, including affordable housing. The city would also receive provisions like new internships, shadowing and apprenticeship programs for high school and college students.
Meanwhile, members of the Utah Legislature's Revitalization Zone Committee, which voted earlier this month to support the deal, also submitted a final recommendation letter Thursday. In it, they wrote that they believe the city should be "willing" to use a portion of the fee to address homelessness mitigation and public safety concerns "if needed."
The committee recommended that the two sides work with Salt Lake County to "prioritize an Abravanel Hall renovation that preserves it in its current location," as well. That is something expected to be sorted out as Smith Entertainment Group seeks a lease agreement with the county.
It's worth noting that the agreement says modifications to 300 West would seek to link the Delta Center to the Salt Palace Convention Center, Abravanel Hall and "the rest of downtown" through a new public plaza. The agreement also has language tied to protecting what is left of Salt Lake City's historic Japantown neighborhood.
Committee members added that supporting the plan also doesn't mean that the state is committing funds toward any projects.
Tuesday's potential votes would take place as both the Jazz and the Utah Hockey Club prepare for their respective seasons. The NHL team made its Delta Center debut with a 3-2 preseason win over Los Angeles on Monday, while Jazz will host their preseason home debut on Oct. 4.
