Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith has made his pitch for public funding for a sports and entertainment district.
Now he’s sharing a glimpse of his vision for the project.
Utah’s SB272, which would allow Salt Lake City to create such a district funded by a city-wide sales tax increase, unanimously passed through committee last week. On Tuesday, Smith tweeted out the first prospective rendering of what the project might look like.
The rendering shows a massive stadium at the end of a pedestrian boulevard, lined with retail shops, restaurants and a high-rise building that appears to have a pool with cabanas overlooking the street.
The verbiage of the tweet itself is interesting, too: Smith calls downtown Salt Lake City “the heart of Utah.” He also said downtown “desperately needs investment,” and that “NBA / NHL” — it’s not clear whether Smith means both or one or the other — would be at its core.
The Utah Senate is expected to discuss the bill this week. The legislation would clear the way for a sales tax increase of up to .5%, creating approximately $1 billion for the project over 20 years.
