Mormon leaders and Salt Lake City work together to transform land

SALT LAKE CITY — When the Mormon Church recently purchased 13 acres near 400 South and Main Street in Salt Lake City, some wondered if the church was "expanding" its traditional buffer around Temple Square.

Church leaders, however, didn't see it that way.

"Someday, the south end of Salt Lake City is going to be an important part of the economic development of this city. We want it preserved so somebody can come in and really maximize what can be done to bless the city, Main Street and its environs," Bishop H. David Burton told the Deseret News last week. "The church stepped in to make sure it was available when it was time economically for something to happen in that part of the city."

In a wide-ranging interview with the Deseret News, Bishop Burton, presiding bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, discussed the church's philosophy about real estate.

In many ways, that purchase is representative of the ways in which the LDS Church, one of the city's largest property owners, and the city have worked hand in hand for more than a century to transform what some dismissed as an arid wasteland into one of the most vibrant cities in the West.

"It is in our DNA," says Bishop Burton. For Bishop Burton, every project the city has taken on in Salt Lake has been part of Brigham Young's vision to "make the desert bloom."

"We are committed to do our part to make this a safe, beautiful and enjoyable community where people can enjoy one another, can enjoy the blessings of living in the tops of the mountains and can have safety and education for their families," Burton said. "That's what we're about, in part — to help with community enhancement."

He says that legacy stretches from 1869, when the church helped build the railroads, to today's City Creek project, which city leaders acknowledge never would have come about without the church's involvement. The Salt Palace, Abravanel Hall, and the proposed Broadway Theater would not be completed without the church's help, Bishop Burton says.

Reflecting on City Creek, Bishop Burton said that if he'd known seven or eight years ago that "we'd be facing the second-worst recessionary period in our history, I may have not suggested we proceed this quickly with the City Creek project. But knowing there would be on any given day upwards of 1,700 jobs in the community — and that could bless the lives of a lot of families," the church decided to move forward.