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OGDEN – The longtime Wonder/Hostess factory closed back in 2012, but seeing it torn down Tuesday was still tough for some people to see.
“Kind of hurts a little bit,” Ogden resident K.C. Quintana said. “My mom used to walk me by this place, and the smell of the Wonder Bread company was just pleasant.”
Others however, were eager to see something new take it’s place.
“It’s time that they took down all these obsolete buildings,” Ogden resident Casey Kunimura said," and do something about beautifying the center of Ogden.”
Kunimura’s sentiments aren’t that far off from what Ogden city leaders are hoping for. The 4.9-acre lot is currently zoned for a mixed-use, high density development, including both housing and businesses.
“We had an idea that we’d create some urban density, and mixed-use,” Brandon Cooper, Ogden’s deputy director of community and economic development explained. “(And to) create some additional parking to support 25th Street, and really bring more bodies to the downtown.”
Cooper, however, said there are no concrete plans at the moment. City council members were set to discuss the lot’s future in a work session Tuesday night, which would begin the process of having the area designated as a redevelopment area, and part of the downtown revitalization plan.
“We’re looking to take the properties that are contiguous to 25th Street, and enhance those properties,” Cooper said. “And by doing so, we enhance the vibrancy of 25th Street.”
Demolition of the Wonder Bread factor is expected to take several weeks.
