Gov. Cox paves the way for Salt Lake stadium developments with signature

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — On Tuesday, March 19, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed two bills to pave the way for sports stadiums and redevelopment in Salt Lake City.

The bills, H.B. 562 and S.B. 272, open the door for the potential redevelopment of a Major League Baseball stadium and National Hockey League redevelopment, respectively. However, both bills have contingencies before any development can begin.

Both bills come with billion-dollar price tags but go about different ways of obtaining that funding.

SB 272 relies more on bonds that could be repaid with an increase to the Salt Lake City Sales Tax up to .5%. The Salt Lake City Council has to approve the increase, which it has until the end of the year to do.

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Utah Jazz co-owner Ryan Smith previously shared a rendering for a reimagined downtown Salt Lake City, complete with a new arena at its center. The arena would supposedly house both the Utah Jazz and an NHL team, should Utah be awarded an expansion team in the future.

Smith submitted a bid to the NHL earlier this year, inviting the league to expansion talks, but expansion is likely several years away.

H.B. 562 creates the Utah Fairpark area district. Money for the district and the district-owned ballpark would be levied by various taxes, including hotels, energy sales and resort communities, among others. Taxes on car rentals would also be increased to provide additional revenue.

Funding for the project would only begin if Salt Lake City is awarded an MLB team by 2032. Big League Utah, a coalition of Utah political, business, and community leaders, is actively pushing for the team to come to Utah, but like the NHL push, any potential team announcements are likely still several years away.

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