Construction sites don't have to be ugly.

As downtown Salt Lake City prepares for a host of major projects — including City Creek Center, new or renovated office towers, and residential buildings — the city is looking for ways to make the potential eyesores into something worth looking at. And some developers have come up with their own ideas.

A requirement recently added to the city's barricading-permit process mandates what are being called "construction wraps," flexible banners that disguise the wooden barricades in front of the work site.

When a new project requires a site to be barricaded, the big wooden walls will now be covered with these wraps, which will feature information about the project, artists' renderings of what's being built and contact information for developers and the city's construction ombudsman. The wraps also will have windows for passers-by to peer through and watch the work. The ideas for the wraps are many and will vary depending on the nature of the project.

"That's the concept, to try to decorate it a little bit," city transportation director Tim Harpst said.

While the wraps are an added burden for builders of new projects, the idea actually came from the business community. The requirement is a joint effort of the city, the Salt Lake Area Chamber of Commerce and its Downtown Rising campaign.

Dale Bills, spokesman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' City Creek Center project, said the wraps will be "a real benefit" for the development.

"They will keep people informed and build anticipation for the exciting future of downtown Salt Lake City," he said.

City Creek Center will likely be the largest project using the wraps. The center will cover two downtown blocks — between 100 South and South Temple from State Street to West Temple — and will replace the Crossroads Plaza and ZCMI Center malls with a mix of retail, office and residential space.

Other projects, including individual buildings such as the new office towers being built by Hamilton Partners at 222 S. Main and the Metro Condos at 350 S. 200 East, will also be required to use the wraps.

"This is something that's becoming more of the norm in the construction industry," Harpst said. "There are communities that are already doing this."

The wraps will also include information about events and happenings throughout downtown, part of the city's and Downtown Rising's efforts to promote the idea that downtown remains open even during the widespread redevelopment.

Meanwhile, the company renovating the Walker Center downtown has instituted a similar idea, sparking the interest of at least one City Council member.