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UPDATE: This story was updated to include a comment from the owner of The Other Place and give more context about the process to approve this proposed redevelopment.
A new eight-story apartment building would replace two aging retail buildings on 300 South in Salt Lake City’s Central City neighborhood east of Downtown.
The project, at 457 E. 300 S., would replace The Other Place, a diner serving Greek food in the spot for nearly 40 years and whose owner is apparently ready to call it quits.
It would continue the ongoing replacement of aging retail and office buildings that previously lined 300 South on the Downtown periphery before the development wave washed them away.
In this case, the building would be a net loss of commercial and retail space on 300 South, replacing two existing buildings with a new, much larger one that includes private amenity space on the ground floor and a 1,030-square-foot lobby/leasing/flex commercial space.
The 206,000-square-foot project would be unique in that it proposes to include numerous four-bedroom apartments throughout the building as part of a unit mix that is rare for the city and its Downtown area.
UNIT BREAKDOWN
- Studios: 51 units
- One-bedroom: 19 units
- Two-bedroom: 34 units
- Three-bedroom: 1 unit
- Four-bedroom: 55 units
About half of the four-bedroom units would also have four bathrooms in a footprint that’s just over 1,200 square feet, according to the documents the developer submitted to the city on Thursday. The four-bedroom units account for about a third of the building’s 160-unit breakdown.
The building would also include 65 structured parking stalls and a secured bike storage area the developer says could store 40 bikes. Car parking would be accessed from a single driveway entrance on 500 East.
The buildings under the development footprint are within the Residential Mixed-Use (RMU) zoning district, which caps multifamily projects at 75 feet of height unless the developer receives approval from the Planning Commission through the design review process.
In this case, the Indiana-based developer is asking the city to allow it to build up to about 80 feet.
The design review application was filed by the Atlanta based architecture firm Niles Bolton Associates. The owner of both buildings subject to redevelopment is Konstantinos “Kosta” Louras, who couldn’t immediately be reached for comment on Thursday. Louras opened The Other Place in 1986.
In an email exchange over the weekend, Louras said the deal had not been finalized, and restaurant staff have told members of the public the restaurant isn’t closing. But Louras confirmed what the public documents show: he has given a developer permission to seek city approval to redevelop his buildings, including one that is home to The Other Place restaurant.
“It’s difficult to provide definitive information until the developer receives approval from the city,” Louras said when asked when he would close his restaurant.
“I’m not denying that a developer has expressed interest, but no deal has been approved,” he said. “Until they are, I have no plans to close.”
The design review process can take several months.
City documents also list Trinitas Ventures as the developer, though county records don’t show that any sale of the buildings has closed. This would be Trinitas’ first project in Utah.
The project would not extend to the corner of 300 S. 500 E., and won’t directly impact Dick N’ Dixie’s dive bar or Yoko Ramen.
An existing survey shows The Other Place shares a 10-foot driveway aisle with the building that’s home to Yoko Ramen. 6 feet belong to the Yoko building and 4 feet belong to The Other Place. Project renderings show the developer plans to use the space as part of a mid-block walkway leading to and from 500 East.
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