A rendering of the rooftop bar in the Domain mid-rise hotel, located at 370 S. West Temple. Image via Domain Companies/VUW
A new, mid-rise hotel in Downtown Salt Lake City has closed on its financing, paving the way for the luxury hotel to open in the coming years amid a renewed effort by developers to add hundreds of hotel rooms in the Downtown core.
Domain Companies announced Thursday that its long-awaited, 10-story luxury hotel at 370 S. West Temple had closed on $102 million in financing for the project in partnership with private equity real estate firm Cottonwood Group.
The hotel, which is located just off 400 South and started construction last month, will feature 216 rooms, a restaurant, a rooftop bar and other amenities. The building will be a Kimpton hotel that operates under the IHG Hotels brand. The hotel will also feature a fitness center, 7,000 square feet of meeting space, valet parking, indoor and outdoor terraces for events, plus other amenities, Domain said in a news release.
“This is a major step forward in bringing this exciting project to life, which will provide Salt Lake City with a world-class luxury lifestyle hotel experience right in the bustling downtown district and set a new standard for hospitality in the market,” said Matt Schwartz, co-CEO of The Domain Companies, in the news release.
The Kimpton hotel along West Temple would be the chain’s second in Salt Lake City. The brand also has the Hotel Monaco along Main Street and 200 South, three blocks northeast.
Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB) is the architect for the project, according to the news release. The interior designer for the project will be Goodrich along with Studio Mainer, both which are based in New York City. The hotel’s general contractor will be Wadman. Stonebridge Companies will manage the project.
Brokers that closed the deal include Matt Weiner, Jay Morrow, and Dustin Stolly at Walker & Dunlop; as well as Laurie Grasso from Hunton Andrews Kurth.
Plans for the new Domain hotel have been in the works for years, though dirt recently started moving at the site. Initial plans for the site along 400 South and West Temple included a 28-floor mixed-use residential tower, though it appears construction on that building is on hold for the time being amid a glut of new apartment supply in the Downtown submarket.
While the Domain hotel is moving forward, another is facing an entitlement challenge with the city.
An exterior rendering of the proposed hotel along 300 South. Image via Melissa Peterson
300 South hotel pitch
On March 10, the council was briefed on a proposal to rezone a .62-acre parcel of land in Central City, located at 256 E. 300 South, from MU-8 to Central Business District (D-1). If approved, plans for the site call for a luxury hotel tower totaling around 180 feet in height. Back in November 2024, the project received a negative recommendation from the Salt Lake City Planning Commission, with commissioners voting 5-2.
But the City Council is the ultimate land use decider, and members expressed concerns with the proposal.
The applicant, Shawn Wade, told council members during the March 10 meeting that his family has owned this parcel for years, and it used to be the site used to be an apartment building that burned down in 1991. It’s currently a parking lot, and for over three decades he and his family have tried to do something with the parcel, Wade said.
Wade said his family determined the only type of project that would make financial sense is a luxury hotel, as the narrow parcel would make it difficult to build any other type of project. His first choice was to build apartments, but he said financially that wouldn’t work.
“We have considered all reasonable uses that could grow on this lot,” Wade told the council. “I mean, we have looked at apartments, commercial, office buildings, condominiums — and the hotel proposed, it makes most financial sense. We’re not looking for the most bang for the buck, we’re looking for it to just pencil.”
Wade also said he’s heard from nearby residents who are concerned about the proposed height, but he pointed to the nearby 31-floor Worthington tower, which sits nearly kitty corner across 300 South.
Council members who spoke during the briefing were largely against the project, most notably Council Member Eva Lopez Chavez, who represents the area where the parcel is located. Lopez Chavez took issue with the fact that the project is a hotel, and not a residential building.
Lopez Chavez said she’s seen other projects with lot size limitations be developed into housing, and she agreed with Wade that more could be done with the site beyond it remaining a surface parking lot. However, she said she would not support the current rezone and hotel proposal.
“D-1 has been reserved in the Downtown specifically for housing. So when I say housing, it’s not hotel amenities, it’s not temporary placements for visitors, it is very specific to the residential experience,” Lopez Chavez said. “So at this point, I cannot support this, but I can appreciate the time and the tenaciousness that you and your family want, because I really appreciate getting to know you and your family and this parcel.”
No votes were taken on the potential rezone during the March 10 meeting. The council is expected to hold a hearing to accept public comment in early April, and a potential vote on the hotel rezone could take place as early as April 21.
An interior rendering of the proposed hotel along 300 South. Image via Melissa Peterson
This headline “Salt Lake City grows cold on new Downtown hotels” is odd. One of the hotels is ready to go and the other may not, likely because the planning committee doesn’t like its look.