Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
- Salt Lake City approved a tax reimbursement for Blaser Ventures' $90.4M project.
- The project renovates historic buildings, adding 141 residential units, including 54 affordable units.
- It utilizes a new reinvestment zone incentive, focusing on transit-oriented development and affordable housing.
SALT LAKE CITY — A pair of historic buildings in a fast-growing part of Salt Lake City near downtown are getting new life through a newer incentive from the city.
The Salt Lake City Community Reinvestment Agency board, composed of members of the Salt Lake City Council, voted last week to approve a tax increment reimbursement requested by the Blaser Ventures, the developers behind the Pickle & Hide development in the Granary District.
It's the first project to tap into the 900 South Housing & Transit Reinvestment Zone since Salt Lake City established it two years ago, hoping to spur more affordable housing and transit-oriented development to the former warehouse district southwest of downtown.
Pickle & Hide
The two-part $90.4 million project centers around the renovation and reimagination of the 106-year-old Bissinger Company Hides building and the 131-year-old Utah Pickle Company building located next to each other by 739 S. 400 West, along with new residential development.
Salt Lake City, in 2017, received a $50,000 grant toward preserving both buildings.
The first phase already started, focusing on the preservation of the Hides building's facade and 40% of its exterior, according to Lauren Parisi, a senior project manager for the reinvestment agency, speaking regarding the project details.
A new mixed-use complex is being constructed next to it, adding 16 studio, 99 one-bedroom and 26 two-bedroom units to the growing neighborhood. The project also calls for a three-story parking garage with 164 stalls.
After that, work will shift to renovating the Utah Pickle Company building next door while adding a midblock walkway between the two historic buildings. Crews plan on preserving part of the Pickle building's facade and reusing original bricks while also repurposing its sandstone foundation.
On top of adding residents, the two parts are also slated to bring about 20,000 square feet of combined commercial, retail and restaurant space to the area and about 30,000 square feet of public open space when they wrap up in mid-2026.
Fifty-four of the 141 units would be dedicated to affordable housing, ranging from 60% to 80% of the area median income, Parisi said.
A new incentive
The project would fall inside a reinvestment zone within the Granary District and Central Ninth neighborhoods the city outlined in 2023, utilizing an incentive that the Utah Legislature created in 2021. The law allows municipalities to create special areas within one-third of a mile radius of a commuter rail station where local tax increment revenue — added revenue tied to redevelopment — can be applied to high-density, affordable housing projects.
The city identified a handful of existing plots that it'd like to see redeveloped near the 900 South TRAX station, including the Pickle and Hides buildings. However, Utah Transit Authority's TechLink project could also extend new TRAX service along 400 West by the Pickle & Hide within the next decade.
Parisi explained that the Pickle & Hide project fits all the required criteria to receive the incentive, as it sets aside enough affordable housing, includes an "activated" ground-floor space plan, meets the city's sustainability policy with its mostly all-electric design, and there's a good enough reason for developers to seek reimbursement.
It would help the developers recoup some of the expected costs tied to offering affordable housing, as well as preserve the historic buildings rather than tear them down, she said.
The project also includes adaptive reuse, walkability and community/commercial services elements that help it qualify for up to 90% reimbursement on tax increments for up to 15 years. The reinvestment agency estimates that the project will generate $8.8 million in tax increments over that time, $6.09 million of which would go to the developers.
"This total tax increment payment may be lower than the projected amount based on the actual increment that is generated by the project, but this is kind of the maximum they could collect from us if it's generated based on the property value," she said.
The board voted in favor of awarding the incentive but with some additional requirements. The developers will submit an energy efficiency information report, as well as enroll in Rocky Mountain Power's Blue Sky program and receive an easement for public access on the midblock walkway.
Board members also tacked on a few other conditions before their vote, including that the project includes water-wise landscaping, smart irrigation systems and a request that all landscaping be completed with all-electric equipment if possible.
Salt Lake City Councilwoman Victoria Petro said she believes that the project hits everything the city wanted when it created the 900 South Housing & Transit Reinvestment Zone.
"It feels like a really exciting time for us to test out this new program that we so badly want to have a proof of concept on," she said before the vote.
Brandon Blaser, CEO of Blaser Ventures, who attended the meeting, said the company plans to abide by the added stipulations, although he cautioned that third-party landscaping companies, which are often used for maintaining properties, may not offer electric equipment.
A future extension of the project's walkway would connect it to Kilby Court, a small roadway just east of the project footprint. Blaser Ventures acquired the popular music venue at the end of the road last year, and Blaser told KSL NewsRadio at the time that he'd like to expand the Kilby Court music venue from a 250-person venue into a 500- or 1,000-person venue.
He also developed the Post District that opened last year, becoming the first project in the state to explore federally-created "opportunity zones" to kickstart development in blighted areas.
