Salt Lake City to purchase Rio Grande Hotel

Salt Lake City will purchase the remodeled Rio Grande Hotel.

The city's Redevelopment Agency voted unanimously Tuesday to acquire the hotel, 428 W. 300 South, for about $375,000.

"I think it's a great acquisition," said councilman and RDA chairman Eric Jergensen. "It goes a long way toward meeting our commitment" of providing 150 single-room occupancy units in the city.

Salt Lake leaders have been looking for units to house the hundred or so tenants who will be displaced when the rundown Regis and Cambridge hotels, near 250 S. State, are either demolished or renovated.

The State Street hotels charge $80 a week and do not require background or credit checks, making them an attractive option for people trying to get back on their feet.

Some residents have stayed at the Regis for more than a decade and have voiced concerns about moving to the 60-unit Palmer Court, 999 S. Main.

The 49-unit Rio Grande could be an attractive alternative to Regis residents.

"It will be the same in that you are renting the room with a bathroom down the hall," said RDA deputy director Valda Tarbet. "We're obviously looking for a manager that will lease at the same rates that we are currently leasing the Regis and Cambridge. It will be the same in that there won't be background checks or credit checks. It will be different in that, I think, it is in substantially better condition."