Large mixed-use project coming to 400 South
*This is an updated version of a previous post
The Gilgal Sculpture Garden, a small park that features unique sculptures, is about to be less hidden. Demolition is underway at the former Wonder Bread site on the 700 East block of 400 South. For decades the vacant 80,891-square-foot bakery and distribution building has helped shield the gardens from street-level view on 500 South. The buildings are being demolished to make way for the Liberty Boulevard Apartments, mixed-use four-story development.
As with other projects featuring the Liberty moniker, Cowboy Partners is the developer. The project will include 267 residential units and 4,000 square feet of ground floor commercial space. The three plus acre project will be a block long, with street frontage on both 400 and 500 South and 700 East between X Wives Place and Ruby River Steakhouse.
The project will have commercial space fronting 400 South and will be built up to the street level on both 400 South and 700 East, matching the setbacks of businesses that are already there. The development will have a larger setback on 500 South to match adjacent buildings.
Just under half of the residential units will be one-bedroom units. The remaining half will 27 percent studio units and 23 percent two-bedroom units. The project will be mixed-income, with 10 percent of the units designated as affordable housing, reserved for residents earning 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI). The remaining 90 percent of the units will be available at market rate.
Because the project will be a block long, the development will have varying building setbacks starting on the second floor and include six u-shaped courtyards to assuage the project’s visual impact.
The project will have ample parking, 340 spaces in a surface parking structure. The parking ratio is 1:1 for the studio and one-bedroom apartments and 2:1 for the two-bedroom units. The parking structure will have just over 30 spaces reserved for commercial tenants, leasing office and guests.
The project is within the Transit Service Area zoning (TSA). Projects within a quarter-mile radius of a transit station are scored according to a checklist that awards points for various project elements that deemed important for urban projects with close to transit. Developers need a TSA development score of at least 100 or they will face an administrative hearing or a review by the planning commission.
The Liberty Boulevard development received a TSA development score of 114. The development earned points for its proposed on-site parking structure, its proximity to transit (it is less than 1,000 feet to two TRAX stations), bicycle storage, streetscape enhancements, public spaces visible from the street level, materials, common space on the roof, 360-degree architecture, sustainable landscaping and project density.
According to planning documents, amenities will include an art gallery with exhibits depicting the site’s history, lobby and reception area, resident lounge with free Wi-Fi, fitness center, swimming pool, sundeck, clubroom with a cyber cafe, courtyards and bicycle storage.
Architectural Nexus is the architectural firm that designed the Liberty Boulevard. The firm also designed Liberty Crest, another Cowboy Partner’s project under construction in downtown Salt Lake on the 100 South block of 200 East.
The Liberty Boulevard Apartments is one of two Cowboy projects in the works in the Trolley Square area. The developers went before the Historic Landmark Commission last October with plans to build the Liberty Square Apartments, directly north from Trolley Square on 500 South. The HLC voted to delay making a decision so that the developers could return with more detailed plans.
The neighborhood is one the most amenity rich in the city. Both developments will be close to transit and a block or less from Trolley Square and four grocery stores: Smiths Marketplace, Whole Foods, Natural Grocers and Trader Joe’s.
