What is the Post District?

You have driven by it hundreds of times—perhaps even thousands. The blink-and-you’ll-miss-it area to your left as you blast up the 500 South entrance to Interstates 15 and 80, has, for as long as we can remember, been a blighted area of warehouses and fenced-off empty lots. But something is happening on this sandbar at the confluence of two major rivers of trafick—the Interstates and Utah Highway 89 (300 West). The Post District is an ambitious experiment in urban planning to invigorate and, as planners say, “activate,” a forgotten part of our city.

And it’s well underway. The new neighborhood, designed to pedestrian scale, is already home to a good chunk of the planned 580 residential units and two standout eateries Urban Hill and Level Crossing Brewery with more food and beverage options to come. The food and beverage focus is what has us most interested. All over Salt Lake, so-called “mixed-use” condos and apartments are springing up, but there doesn’t seem to be much “mix” to the use. Mostly we see empty street-level spaces that are building leasing offices, front desk lobbies or the condo tower’s gym. In the Post District, planners are living up to the promise of creating an actual place.

Post District Utah

Of course, we’ve seen this before. (Did anyone have a friend who lived in a condo at The Gateway?) But the success of Urban Hill and Level Crossing thus far, has us hoping for more than a phony city that’s actually just a mall. It’s also encouraging that Traeger is planning to open its Salt Lake Headquarters within. The challenge will now be connecting the island to the city by creating pathways for pedestrians to get there (currently an option only for the brave) and links to transit.


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Jeremy Pugh
Jeremy Pughhttps://www.saltlakemagazine.com/
Jeremy Pugh is Salt Lake magazine's Editor. He covers culture, history, the outdoors and whatever needs a look. Jeremy is also the author of the book "100 Things to Do in Salt Lake City Before You Die" and the co-author of the history, culture and urban legend guidebook "Secret Salt Lake."

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