Another bang up meeting in the Ballpark!
We welcomed more than 100 neighbors at Publik Roasters to review the three scenarios under consideration by the city’s Redevelopment Agency. Our goal? Make sure the community had eyes on these plans first, and to share our feedback directly with Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City (RDA) staff and elected officials before the public unveiling at a meeting the next day. The result? We were seen and heard!
Thanks to our community partners - the Central Ninth Community Council, the Ballpark Community Council and the MidTown Business District. While each of us has a different mission, we are all committed to the vibrancy of the greater Ballpark neighborhood and to a fantastic future for our community. We were also pleased to have Councilmembers Darin Mano and Dan Dougan in attendance, newly-elected state representatives Grant Miller and Hoang Nguyen, representatives from Mayor Mendenhall’s office and the RDA, as well as local nonprofits like Volunteers of America, Alliance House and many others. Thanks always to Missy Greis and the folks at Publik Roasters for hosting the event, and to Erika Carlsen for her expert facilitation.
There are many places to dive deeply into the three options, but the best summary is on the Ballpark NEXT website, which is run by the City and has the most up to date information. You can find that here.
What is under consideration?
It is important to remember these are not final designs - just a summary of the options the RDA and City have when considering what to ultimately do with the site. The RDA presented a lot of information - including the good news that the engineering assessment says the buildings have plenty of life in them!
Those in attendance provided two kinds of feedback - the things they loved and the things that concerned them about the three options. These ideas are being taken into consideration by the RDA.
What are the three options?
Scenario 1: Preserve and renovate the entire stadium with a focus on multi-generational sports and year-round activity. Highlights include:
Complementary uses such as farmers markets, festivals, and attractions on non-game days.
A regulation soccer field alongside the baseball diamond.
Ground-floor activation along the exterior with local businesses along 1300 South and West Temple.
Scenario 2: Adaptive Reuse, with a focus on saving part of the original Ballpark, and using that as a cultural and civic landmark for art, performance, and community activities. Highlights include:
Multi-purpose greenspaces for performances, sporting events, and open green space
Festival street along West Temple with pop-up events and markets.
Community park featuring restaurants, retail, and creative spaces.
Adaptive reuse of the stadium for mixed-use functions, including residential and creative spaces.
Option 3: Completely Rebuild with a focus on parks and residential. Highlights include:
Possibility of daylighting the three creeks and making a number of interactive landscapes for recreation and relaxation.
Tree-lined streets with bike lanes, lighting, and walkways.
Quiet residential areas surrounded by pocket parks and playgrounds.
Which did the community prefer?
The second! At the end of the meeting Erika asked us to vote without feet and stand next to the design plan we preferred. Nearly everyone chose the adaptive reuse / cultural option, though plenty of people loved ideas from the other plans as well, especially the daylighted creek concept.
Does our opinion matter?
Yes. While a committee, including many members of the neighborhood, have been working on these plans for more than a year, a committee that meets during the day is not enough! BAT is working hard to make sure that the broader community has opportunities to to weigh in - like our community meeting last September. We really appreciate everyone turning out to say “Nothing about us without us!
What about interim activation?
At our last meeting we really pushed the City to make a plan for the next few years. It's great news that the Utes will play next season at the stadium - but what about the rest of the summer and fall and the years after that? Be assured BAT is asking the same questions, and shared all the feedback from our last community meeting with the City. We won’t stop advocating until there is a plan in place! The RDA says they are deep in the planning and should have something to announce soon, and we will share any updates in our newsletter and on instagram.
What about the $100 million pledged to the neighborhood?
When the Bees announced they were leaving, the Mayor shared that $100 million dollars will be raised to support the long term success of the neighborhood. This fund is called the Ballpark Trust. There is no real progress to share here - but BAT will continue to keep an eye on this process and how we can advocate for our community.
How you can be a part of BAT
We invite you to join us in whatever way makes sense. This is your organization. Now that we are off the ground, we plan on holding more formal and informal gatherings. Please let us know how we can help you go to ‘bat for the Ballpark’. You can reach us at ballparkactionteam@gmail.com, on our website ballparkactionteam.org or via instagram @ballparkactionteam.
Thanks especially to the more than 100 neighbors and friends of the Ballpark neighborhood who came to share their ideas with each other and the City. Hope to see you in the neighborhood soon!
Additional information
Questions with the Mayor Erin Mendenhall and Council member Darin Mano
Watch the meeting here
“I don't blame you for feeling surprised and hurt and angry, or worried. This is trauma…We don’t know what will happen yet. But I can tell you what my number one priority is – it needs to be activated more than 71 days a year. It needs to be positively activated every single day.” - Mayor Mendenhall
“I know there will be some really great ideas for this community.” - Councilmember Mano
The organizing committee spoke with many residents to develop a short list of common questions to pose to our elected officials on behalf of the community. Rather than dive deeply into this part of the meeting in this report, which is focused on input gathered at the meeting, we provide the questions and encourage you to view the entire meeting online here.
We understand you have been involved in this process for over a year. Help us understand the actions and process that led us to this point, especially since many of us are wondering if we could have played a constructive role preventing the Bee’s leaving the Ballpark.
How do you plan for the community to remain actively involved as invested stakeholders in Ballpark Next? What can we expect moving forward?
What is the intended timeline for Ballpark Next once the application process closes on March 17th? How will residents be explicitly invited to weigh in on the process and selected proposals at each stage of the process?
We understand that the outcomes of the Ballpark NEXT contest may have little or no bearing on what the city decides to do with the ballpark site/structure. Since these are separate processes, can you describe the city's timeline/plan for engagement on the city's decision-making process for what will happen to the ballpark property and stadium?
We acknowledge the generous and historic investment of $100M into the future of the Ballpark area led by the Larry H Miller Group. How, if at all, will the community be involved in determining the allocation of this investment? If possible, we’d love to hear from representatives from LHM, Zions Bank, and others as appropriate along with City Officials.
Meeting outcomes
Neighbors, Business Owners, and City Officials enrich and deepen connections as invested stakeholders in the future of the Ballpark and the neighborhoods surrounding it
Neighbors, Business Owners, and City Officials have an opportunity to acknowledge and mourn the collective loss of a Salt Lake institution
City Officials provide greater clarity and transparency regarding the process and intended outcomes of Ballpark Next
Neighbors and Business owners are clear regarding how community engagement and input will be involved in future decisions related to the Ballpark site, including the historic $100M public-private partnership
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