Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Salt Lake City Council approved a $200,000 loan for Hruska's Kolaches.
- The loan aids renovation and hiring, supporting Hruska's move to another location in Sugar House.
- City officials see Hruska's as vital to revitalizing a commercial space along 1100 East in the neighborhood.
SALT LAKE CITY — A Provo startup that has also become a Sugar House staple for nearly a decade is getting a boost from Salt Lake City as it relocates within the neighborhood.
The Salt Lake City Council voted Tuesday night to approve a $200,000 loan for Hruskas, LLC, through the Salt Lake City Economic Development Loan Fund program, following support from department officials earlier in the day.
Better known as Hruska's Kolaches, the company has operated near the corner of 2100 South and 900 East in Sugar House since 2016. The loan seeks to help the business cover renovation costs and other expenses of a new location at 1751 S. 1100 East, a space last occupied by the bakery Brownies! Brownies! Brownies!
The loan would also help Hruska's hire two new employees, while retaining nine existing employees, a city document notes.
Its new location has had a few different tenants over the past decade, but it has been vacant for some time while 1100 East underwent a complete reconstruction that ended late last year. Brownies! Brownies! Brownies! was the last of those businesses, closing at the end of 2022 after initially surviving the economic constraints of the COVID-19 pandemic that emerged not long after it opened in 2018.
The city hopes that Hruska's can help bring life back to the area.
"We're really excited about Hruska's relocating to this location as they are a legacy business — also a strong candidate to make that location work," said Peter Makowski, deputy director of business development for Salt Lake City Department of Economic Development.
It wasn't immediately clear when the relocation will take place, but city records show that Hruska's began securing permits to renovate the building last year. The business also applied for a city loan in June 2024. The loan comes with an 11% interest rate over seven years, most of which reflects the prime rate at the time of the application.
Siblings Ross, Cory and Devin Hruska, all BYU students at the time, initially launched Hruska's Kolaches in Provo over a decade ago, according to the Deseret News. Their bakery specializes in Czech pastries with a mix of fruit and savory fillings, utilizing a family recipe passed down from generations.
It has since grown to open five locations scattered across the Wasatch Front, and it was once featured on Food Network's "Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives."
