Big boxes find no room in Bountiful

BOUNTIFUL — Don't tell Bountiful officials that city shopping choices are limited. They already know.

You won't find a Wal-Mart, Target or other big-box retailer here. An occasional mom-and-pop store is about the only choice you can find, other than a Smith's Marketplace and a ShopKo.

Unlike its neighbors, this city sitting in Salt Lake City's shadow hasn't wooed big-time retailers and the tax revenue they bring. It can't.

"We would like to have more shopping opportunities," Bountiful City Manager Tom Hardy said. "Our problem is we don't have the raw ground of sitting acreage to put a big box on."

The city is almost completely built out. Finding an open 20 acres to clear enough property for Wal-Mart and its giant parking lot is nearly impossible, Hardy said.

Bountiful used to be the shopping hub of Davis County during its major growth spurt from 1950-1970, Hardy said. Since then, retailers have set up shop in Layton, West Bountiful and Centerville.

The difference is night and day a few miles up the road in Layton. Jump off of I-15 and find everything your shopping heart desires. Fixing up the house? Lowe's is right there. So are other chain stores — Super Target, Toys R Us, Barnes & Noble.

A Kohl's department store just opened, and a Home Depot is under construction. The list goes on.

Chris Dallin, president and CEO of the Davis Chamber of Commerce, said Bountiful residents aren't asking for more retail opportunities. They can just drive five minutes south to Salt Lake or head to other stores in neighboring cities. Northern Davis County cities don't have that same luxury.

"It's been a demand issue — people wanting services and not wanting to drive a long distance to get them," Dallin said.

Development in Layton centers on the Layton Hills Mall, built in 1980. Before that, the area was typically a farmer's paradise, with little or no places to shop. A so-called "north-south split" tore Davis County apart.

The mall brought a sense of unity. Former Bountiful Mayor Bob Linell told the Deseret Morning News at the time that the mall blended both ends of the county together.

"I don't think you ever saw a Bountiful person go north to shop before the mall," Linell said.

Once the mall was built, other stores slowly started to build nearby. Wal-Mart, Granite Furniture, Albertsons, ShopKo and multiple national restaurant chains soon followed.

"It was kind of the impetus that started the shift of shopping from south of the county to north of the county," said Kent Sulser, Davis County manager of economic development.