Pioneer Park revitalization will feature year-round farmer's market
Their freshly signed 'Memorandum of Understanding', between the Downtown Alliance and Salt Lake City, aims to breathe new life into Pioneer Park — an area that's long been plagued by low visitation rates — by creating an all-year-round public market building.
'Now, let's be honest. Pioneer Park has a bad reputation,' Dee Brewer, executive director of Downtown Alliance, said at the annual meeting in the Gallivan Center. 'Last year, the average daily park visitation was less than 170 people a day.'
The Downtown Alliance saw a solution to this problem in the park's farmers market, which has proven to be a magnet for the community's foot traffic.
Pioneer Park will get a facelift in 2025 – Here's what Salt Lake City is adding
According to Brewer, 65% of park visits occurred on just 21 days, all of those being when the farmers' market was open.
The new public building aims to keep this momentum going all year round. Preliminary plans include a beverage bar, clean restrooms, a large hall, and a community gathering space that would become home to an all-year-round farmer's market, according to Carly Gillespie, director of Urban Food Connections of Utah.
'We want to continue to create social and economic prosperity in the neighborhood and in downtown Salt Lake,' Gillespie said.
The Downtown Alliance's proposed building would also provide a permanent space for the Downtown Ambassadors, offering a visible presence in the park to create a stronger sense of safety.
Salt Lake City said that the Public Lands Department collected feedback from over 2,800 people and worked with community groups to choose the planned amenities. The park is also seeking a SITES certification — a framework that recognizes sustainability and resilience in design, development, and management.
The alliance said in a press release that they are looking to actively conduct public outreach and feasibility assessment throughout this year. A clearer timeline of completion is expected once those steps are finished.
'We look forward to the results of the feasibility study, which the Downtown Alliance will begin leading this summer,' said Blake Thomas, Senior Advisor on Real Estate and Capital Projects. 'This study, along with the efforts our Public Lands team has undertaken, has the potential to transform this park into a year-round destination and serve as a model for public-private partnerships to enhance our City assets.'
The project complements the Pioneer Park Vision Plan, which was developed in 2021 to revitalize the area, following the City Council's approval of $3.44 million in 2019. In 2022, $10 million in funding through the City's $67.5 million Sales Tax Bond was approved for the project. In 2024, an additional $.96 million was allocated for the Vision Plan, allowing the city to begin implementation.
'Pioneer Park is a cornerstone of our downtown heritage, and it has long been full of untapped potential,' said Mayor Mendenhall. 'This public-private partnership with the Downtown Alliance paves the way for positive change and increased public safety — while working in concert with the long-planned park improvements Salt Lakers have asked for.'
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