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HOLLADAY — When the recession hit in 2008, communities up and down the Wasatch Front felt the economic tremors.
The timing couldn’t have been worse for the city of Holladay, newly incorporated just nine years earlier and now in the middle of tearing down the old Cottonwood Mall. City Manager Randy Fitts was worried.
“I think we started to do demolition that summer, and when the bottom fell out, we just thought, well we’ve got some problems,” Fitts said.
Plans for the 57-acre privately owned mall site were immediately put on hold, leaving the city’s hands tied. But Fitts and other Holladay leaders didn’t give up. Earlier this year, Fitts and Mayor Rob Dahle watched as the Holladay Village Center opened its doors less than a block away from City Hall.
The mixed-use shopping, dining and office center is quickly filling up with boutiques, a salon, bike shop and several popular local restaurants. Andy Evans manages the newest Caputo’s location.
I think the mixed usage, and I think they're going to do the same thing at Cottonwood. The mixed usage is, I think, a grand idea.
–Gladys Ross, Holladay resident
“We knew that there was demand here in Holladay," Evans said. "Plenty of customers that come downtown that wanted us out here, and so here we are.”
Just across the plaza, Lunatic Fringe stylist Cliff Simons likes the look of the salon’s bottom line and appreciates the convenience for his customers.
“Everybody that lives up on top of the hill have to travel down to the downtown area or Sugar House, so honestly this location is perfect.”
On a sunny summer afternoon, residents enjoy the fresh air, a sandwich, and a coffee from Caputo’s while admiring the mountains and the concept behind the new shopping area. Gladys Ross has lived in Holladay for four decades now.
“I think the mixed usage, and I think they’re going to do the same thing at Cottonwood," Ross said. "The mixed usage is, I think, a grand idea.”
Just down the street, plans for the old Cottonwood Mall site are starting to emerge from the weeds and sagebrush that’s covered the property for the past six years. Word is that Smith’s Food and Drug and the Larry H. Miller Megaplex Theaters will join the existing Macy’s store as anchors of the new development. The announcements over the past few weeks give Dahle reason for hope.
“It is an indication that the momentum for the project has turned,” Dahle said.
Now the city will patiently wait for the land owner and developer, Howard Hughes Corp., to line up a housing developer for the site and possibly break ground next spring.
“Everyone is getting just a really good feel of getting Holladay back on track again,” Simons said.
Evans agrees and adds that “any kind of residential or business developments nearby, I think it’s all helpful to us.”
Ross believes the multi-use developments will be attractive to all types of shoppers.
It’s healthier probably, it’s prettier, and it’s relaxing and it’s great,” Ross said.
Dahle and Fitts appreciate the businesses that have weathered the economic storm in Holladay and hope they’ll soon be able to repay that loyalty. They know it’s the residents and business owners that will bring the city back and people who are eventually lured to the community by 21st-century development that will push the economy over the top.
