{"id":10984,"date":"2012-06-05T18:01:21","date_gmt":"2012-06-06T00:01:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/?p=10984"},"modified":"2025-11-18T10:53:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T17:53:12","slug":"raise-the-granary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/raise-the-granary\/","title":{"rendered":"Raise the Granary"},"content":{"rendered":"

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by Nan Ellin. Photos by Shalee Cooper.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t want another Gateway\u201d is the common refrain echoed by those who live, work, and play in the Granary District. Almost everyone interviewed by a group of University of Utah students over the past year concurred that the success of the district itself, as well as the value it brings to the region, relies upon protecting and enhancing its unique qualities. Instead of beginning with a \u201ctabula rasa\u201d — a clean (or literally, erased) slate, as Gateway did, it is essential to recognize these gems and polish them. Rather than\u00a0raze<\/em>\u00a0what is there to start anew, we need to\u00a0raise<\/em>\u00a0up from what already exists.<\/p>\n

What are the gemstones of the Granary District?<\/p>\n

The most vibrant are\u00a0the people<\/em>\u00a0who live and work in the Granary District.|1|<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0The arts,|2|<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0music and design communities provide manifold gems including the Pickle Factory,\u00a0<\/span>Artspace Commons,\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>Bad Dog Arts (for children 7-12), Vita Brevis and Captain Captain art studios, independent music venue Kilby Court,\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>street art,\u00a0<\/strong>recording studios and rehearsal spaces,\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>the adaptively reused apartments by Eric Steffensen\u00a0<\/span>as well as his own home\/studio, soon-to-arrive Atlas Architecture Studio and NoBrow Coffee House, Luminous Animation Studios, Art & Frame shop, camera supply store PictureLine, the Classic Car Museum, and screen-printer SpiltInk. Other businesses include Level Nine Sports in a respectfully-restored warehouse, Chic and Unique vintage store,\u00a0<\/span>Expert Tailors, Zion Upholstery, and Donna Bella Milan salon in an old fire station. Treasured gems are food purveyors such as Ruby Snap Bakery renowned for its fresh-baked cookies, El Virole\u00f1o that serves the best pupuser\u00edas in town, and Frida Bistro renowned valley-wide for sophisticated Mexican cuisine.\u00a0And the district is home to the Red Lotus Buddhist Temple, manufacturers, produce wholesalers, autoshops, a number of non-profit organizations, and a community garden (in progress) at Artspace Commons.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Everyone agrees we must ensure that current residents and businesses in the Granary District are not displaced. As Trish McBride, a designer at the Pickle Factory, told Keri Williams: \u201cI don\u2019t want to see it gentrified. Gentrification takes the luster out of the dirt.\u201d<\/p>\n

The buildings<\/em>\u00a0are also gems. More than half are older than 50 years, thereby eligible for historic designation, and two are listed on the National Register of Historic Places: Silver Brothers’ Iron Works Office|14|<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0and Warehouse (550 W. 700 South, currently Safe Haven)|15|<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0and the Fifth Ward Meetinghouse (740 S. 300 West, currently the Buddhist Temple).|16|<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0The unique quality of the Granary District owes in large part to this diverse stock of warehousing, manufacturing, industrial, and office buildings that benefited from the railroad traversing the area.<\/p>\n

Another important gem is\u00a0the location<\/em>\u00a0of the Granary District that offers striking mountain views foregrounded by skyline, as well as valued and valuable proximity to freeways and downtown SLC.|17|<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0The 900 West\u00a0TRAX station<\/em>\u00a0adds an additional gem, providing access to public transportation as well as ideal opportunities for transit-oriented development.|18|<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Those we interviewed mentioned a number of other assets such as the \u201cquality of light, calmness, affordability,\u201d and \u201ccreative vibe\u201d of the area, along with \u201cthe sense that anything is possible.\u201d According to resident Shannon McCallum-Law, \u201cThis is a suburban rehab center \u2014 people come here to recover from suburbia\u201d (interviewed by Keri Williams).<\/p>\n

Several groups of people have been offering more gems through dedicating significant time, energy, insight, creativity, and other resources to the Granary District. One of these is the Kentlands Initiative convened by James Alfandre and Christian Harrison to \u201ccrowdsource\u201d the Granary District\u2019s future (http:\/\/granarydistrict.org<\/a>). According to this group of over 300 residents, local businesses and others, \u201cThe Granary District is a diverse neighborhood with diverse neighbors. It’s both out of the way and in the middle of it all. . . .The Granary District has always been a productive place, and its brightest future is as a haven for makers \u2014 people with dirty hands, big ideas, and warm hearts. It’s gritty, diverse, and grounded.”\u00a0The Kentlands Initiative<\/a>\u00a0has been hosting regular public meetings to gather input from as many as possible, collectively advance ideas, and build support for them. In April, they hosted a weeklong\u00a0charrette<\/em>\u00a0(a collaborative session to solve a design problem) in a Granary District warehouse to develop a community vision for the neighborhood and are currently following up to realize this vision.<\/p>\n

The Redevelopment Agency (RDA) of SLC created the Granary District Project Area in 1999, providing a mechanism for redeveloping the area through tax increment financing (TIF). In tandem with the City of Salt Lake, the RDA has been working to bring a streetcar to 400 West and 700 South, allow accessory dwelling units and cottage housing, support business and employment development, and engage in strategic planning. Almost an entire city block that served for 70 years as a parking lot for the City\u2019s fleet of cars and trucks offers a 10-acre gem, an opportunity to create a tremendous amenity. This and other vacant lots throughout the district could be transformed into parks, food truck courts, outdoor recreational areas, renewable energy stations, and much more. Likewise, vacant buildings offer opportunities for adaptive reuse, providing housing, shops, schools, gyms, or whatever else might benefit the community.<\/p>\n

In addition, six classes from the College of Architecture + Planning at the University of Utah, comprising almost 100 students, turned their gaze to the Granary District this past year.\u00a0These students have been providing a range of resources including community surveys, research on the social and architectural history of the neighborhood, comparative crime data for the district and other neighborhoods, analysis of soil contamination and remediation recommendations, translation of\u00a0charrette\u00a0<\/em>materials into Spanish and engaging the Spanish-speaking community, and investigating best possibilities from similar districts around the globe regarding integrating nature into the city, maintaining affordability, and introducing renewable energy systems. Students also proposed a range of urban design, landscape, and arts and culture proposals. Sam Katz produced\u00a0a short video homage to the district<\/a>, honoring its gems. With Mayor Becker, the College hosted the\u00a0Mayor\u2019s Symposium<\/em>\u00a0in the Rico\u2019s warehouse in February, bringing together a range of local experts on the district, including Frida Bistro owner Jorge Fierro, as well as experts from out of town to instruct, incite, and inspire creative and inclusive approaches to building upon existing assets in the district.<\/p>\n

A group of architects and planners at VCBO Architecture has been working on a booklet highlighting \u201cthe beautiful side of what is the Granary District in an effort to partner with others passionate about seeing this place become something special\u201d (Greg Walker of VCBO). In partnership with the Kentlands Initiative and SLC Green Drinks, the AIA Utah Young Architects Forum \u2014 which includes artists and planners as well as architects \u2014 will be hosting\u00a0Sustain the Granary<\/a><\/em>\u00a0during the June 15 Gallery Stroll, an event that includes a “Jane’s Walk” to showcase existing buildings and promote good design for the district generally (meeting at 6 p.m. at Artspace Commons, look for our June 11 Daily Bytes post for more info).<\/p>\n

Finally, the City of Salt Lake formed a Granary District Coordination Committee to unite all who have a stake in the district\u2019s future. This committee performs the critical role of weaving together all of the efforts described above as well as others, preventing us from working at cross-purposes or duplicating efforts, keeping all apprised of city regulations while heeding recommendations for adjusting these, and learning from each other to inform decision-making and facilitate implementation.<\/p>\n

Whether residents, local business owners and employees, city officials, developers, architects, planners, or visitors to the area, a consensus prevails that the special qualities of the Granary District should not be forsaken. Instead, we begin with a\u00a0tabula plena,<\/em>\u00a0or full slate, by collectively prospecting for existing gems and creatively polishing them, adorning this neighborhood with urban jewels for the benefit of all.<\/p>\n