Smith Entertainment Group buys 20% of the SLC convention center as part of a planned sports, culture and convention district.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Salt Palace Convention Center, on Saturday, March 1, 2025. Smith Entertainment Group bought 20% of the SLC convention center as part of a planned sports, culture and convention district.
Salt Lake County will sell a chunk of the Salt Palace Convention Center to Ryan Smith’s Smith Entertainment Group, the owner of the Utah Jazz and Utah Hockey Club.
The Salt Lake County Council voted unanimously to approve the sale of 12 parcels of land that include the Salt Palace’s largest exhibit hall, along with a smaller exhibit hall and a connected parking garage, for nearly $55,433,000.
The exhibit halls included in the land sale make up nearly 195,000 square feet — about 20% — of the convention center’s total capacity, while the land beneath those structures spans about 6.5 acres. SEG will take possession of the land by February 2027, Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson said.
Construction on the upgraded convention center and the downtown sports, entertainment, culture and convention district’s planned mid-block plaza is expected to begin sometime in 2027 or 2028, she added.
The council determined the property sale is a “necessary condition” for the Delta Center’s improvement, according to the resolution, because additional events at the overhauled center are projected to increase the value of its taxable sales to “more than $400 million annually” by 2034.
The sale, Wilson said during Tuesday’s County Council meeting, is “really more than just about land. … This step is a crucial step in defining our future downtown core and our economic future.”
Mike Maughan, spokesperson for SEG, issued a statement after the vote, expressing the company’s gratitude to the council “for their continued support in the mission to reimagine downtown Salt Lake City.”
Once sold, the property will provide for a “redevelopment that will connect premier downtown spaces,” such as the Delta Center, the Salt Palace, Abravanel Hall, Temple Square, City Creek Center, the Eccles Theater, the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art and “future 2034 Olympic Games venues,” according to the resolution.
“We know right now, when people go to enjoy a symphony, that perhaps they don’t know how to navigate around the Salt Palace to get over to the Delta Center,” Wilson said. “The connectivity and activation is really much of the reason that I have been excited about this project. ”
The sale will also change the 6.5-acre property from a county-owned and tax exempt set of parcels to nonexempt property, which will bring in an additional $4.9 million a year in property tax revenue once the area is redeveloped, according to the resolution.
Proceeds from the sale will go toward the county’s remodel of the Salt Palace, which, according to the resolution, is estimated to cost about $1.5 billion. But much of the funding for the facility’s renovation will come from additional future sales and property taxes generated by the redevelopment, the resolution states.
The remodel plans to add a second ballroom to the convention center, allowing the facility to host multiple major events simultaneously.
And with a second ballroom plus other upgrades, the convention center’s increased capacity will generate an additional annual tax revenue of $6.3 million in state sales tax, $4.2 million in county sales tax and $1 million in Salt Lake City sales tax, according to.the resolution.
As the county looks toward the convention center’s reconstruction, Wilson said the convention center will not close. The remodel will take place over “strategic phases” to ensure the facility can still host large events while construction crews get to work.
“Now we do have very large events that buy out the entire facility,” Wilson said. “We are immediately reaching out to them. We’re starting conversations with them. We’re going to be really creative in figuring out how we handle the impacts, and our team is already doing well on that. ”
The county is submitting a request for proposals this week to get an architect on board for the reimagined convention center, Wilson added. Once a firm is selected, there will be many chances for the public to speak out about the project — and the county plans, in particular, to get input from the Salt Palace‘s Japantown neighbors.
During the meeting’s hourlong public comment period, many members of the Japanese Church of Christ and the Salt Lake City Buddhist Temple — both located along 100 South, just west and south of the convention center — urged the county to ensure the area will be protected during construction.
Council member Natalie Pinkney told the commenters to keep in contact with their County Council members, and said they would serve as an advocates for any concerns that arise.
“This is a time for us to right a wrong,” Pinkney said, acknowledging a history of development that reduced Japantown to just a couple of blocks. “I’m excited about the reimagining of our downtown, and making sure that includes a revitalized, beautiful Japantown.”
