Downtown future bright, Rocky says

Downtown Salt Lake City has a bright future, thanks to local businesses and an onslaught of redevelopment, although plans for a downtown skybridge and Pioneer Park renovations remain problematic, Mayor Rocky Anderson told the Downtown Merchants Association on Wednesday.

In his final State of Downtown speech to the association, Anderson criticized two City Council members — Nancy Saxton and mayoral candidate Dave Buhler — for not supporting the full funding amount Anderson has sought in order to give Pioneer Park a face-lift. Anderson also reiterated his opposition to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' proposal to build a skybridge as part of its City Creek Center mall renovation project.

Anderson has sought major upgrades to Pioneer Park in an effort to draw more visitors, fending off the image of the park as a haven for drug abuse and crime. The City Council has approved $1.3 million for the first phase of renovations, but Anderson wants more.

Those further changes have been stymied, he said, by the "lack of support from several City Council members, including one who is running for mayor and another who is running for re-election."

Saxton, who attended the association's luncheon, dismissed Anderson's comments and questioned whether the gathering was the place to air personal disagreements.

"It's just humorous, and so predictable of him to misrepresent the information," she said. "I've been very supportive of Pioneer Park. I just have a different vision than he does."

Saxton has proposed cheaper infrastructure improvements at the park and an increased police presence, while Anderson's aims go more toward additions that include dog parks, performance stages, concessions vendors and new programming. She said the differences are legitimate disagreements, not cause for anger or criticism.

"No one has any kind of malice," she said. "They just have different visions of things."

For his part, Buhler took issue with the mayor's suggestion that he was standing in the way of improving the park.

"I did support putting $1 million into Pioneer Park, which I think, given all the other needs of the city, was a pretty good amount, a very positive amount," he said.

Anderson also tackled the proposed skybridge, which LDS Church retail partner Taubman Centers Inc. says will be necessary for the shopping component of City Creek Center to thrive. The mayor and many local planning experts warn the bridge could choke Main Street pedestrian activity.

"The interest of a mall developer is not a compelling interest to our city," Anderson said.