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- Salt Lake City is beginning a search for an event contractor to hold events at Smith's Ballpark before redevelopment begins in 2026.
- The city wants community-focused events to take place at the facility during the second half of 2025.
- The University of Utah baseball team will play at the stadium beginning in March.
SALT LAKE CITY — Baseball will soon return to Smith's Ballpark as the University of Utah baseball team is scheduled to make its home debut on March 18, marking its final season at the stadium before its new ballpark near the university campus opens next year.
However, how it will be used between the Utes' home finale — scheduled for May 17 — and when a yet-to-be-picked future reuse of the site's land is starting to become clearer.
The Salt Lake City Community Reinvestment Agency, formerly known as the Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City, is close to sending out a formal request for proposal for "interim activation" of the site, which would find an "innovative use" of it later this year, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall told Ballpark residents during a Ballpark Community Council meeting last week.
Mendenhall said the city is looking to bring in a production/event planning entity that will work with local organizations so that alternate uses for the site can be found before any construction focuses on community needs and desires.
"We want diverse and dynamic programming. We want programming that is local-centric," she said. "It's an emphasis on engaging local businesses to participate in the events, fostering partnership and ensuring that events reflect this neighborhood's unique identity."
Community Reinvestment Agency officials said they're hoping to pick a contractor by as early as next month. The contract will run from July through the end of this year; it would be up to the contractor to coordinate events beginning on July 1.
Events could include pop-up markets, food festivals, trade shows, performances or other sports. Anything that prioritizes "social connection" will be favored most by the city, the mayor explained. She also noted that there could be a mix of free and ticketed events.
The Salt Lake City Community Reinvestment Agency revealed three final options for the ballpark site last month. The final plan could preserve and reuse the stadium for new uses, or parts — or all of it — could be demolished.
Residents who attended that meeting seemed to favor an update that could demolish some of it, opening some open space, while new buildings to attract people to the area would be built. The agency is expected to settle on a final plan in the coming months.
However, the need for interim uses for the site became apparent when agency officials said a long-term project wouldn't likely begin until 2026 at the earliest. That meant the stadium, which the Salt Lake Bees vacated at the end of 2024 for a new stadium opening in Daybreak this year, would sit empty for at least a year.
The Utes ultimately snagged some of the gap through a deal with the city that was finalized in October 2024. The team had previously shared the stadium through a partnership with the Bees, but the university finalized plans for a new baseball stadium south of Rice-Eccles Stadium after the Bees announced plans for a new ballpark.
