The Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center is scheduled to be shuttered for a three-year redesign and renovation project beginning in the fall of 2027. The project is part of a larger sports and entertainment district rebuild of downtown Salt Lake City. (Courtesy Salt Lake County)
Salt Lake County officials have confirmed the timing of a three-year closure of the Salt Palace. A major redesign and reconstruction project, coinciding with the development of a major downtown Salt Lake City sports and entertainment district, will begin in the fall of 2027, with reopening planned for early 2031.
The Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center, named in honor of Utah’s 11th governor, has long been the hub of Utah’s thriving convention industry. And this won’t be the first time it has shut down for reconstruction. The facility, first opened in 1969 as a home to professional sports teams, including the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association and the Salt Lake Golden Eagles minor league hockey franchise, was completely razed in 1994 to make way for the new convention center, which opened in February 1996. Significant expansions in 2000 and 2005 brought the center to its current nearly 1 million square feet of meeting space.
While renovation plans are yet to be finalized, officials have said the new facility will have double the event ballroom capacity, with modernized visitors’ facilities and the capacity to hold multiple events simultaneously. At one time, county officials had hoped to keep parts of the Salt Palace open during remodeling but now say the extent of the construction will not make that possible.
While the rebuilt Salt Palace will be considered second to none as a convention facility when it reopens, there will be many concerns as three years’ worth of meetings will need to look elsewhere for accommodations. The Salt Palace hosts upwards of 200 conventions every year, according to Visit Salt Lake, the marketing organization tasked with bringing groups to the city.
Previously scheduled events will continue through next summer pending the total shutdown of the center. Beginning with the shutdown, some events may be shifted to the Mountain America Exposition Center in Sandy, but others will certainly have to be moved out of Utah, creating a significant economic impact on downtown commerce.
“The reimagining of our convention center will enable Salt Lake County to add a second ballroom, expand meeting space and host multiple events simultaneously,” said Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson. “This means more visitors, more hotel stays and more tax revenue to support our community services. A reinvestment in the Salt Palace Convention Center is vital to maintaining Salt Lake’s position as a premier meeting and convention destination. Renovations to the convention center will increase flexibility and capacity, enabling the venue to accommodate a wider range of events at a larger scale.”
Salt Lake County has agreed to sell a 6.5-acre tract where the western edge of the Salt Palace sits to Smith Entertainment Group (SEG), owner of the Utah Jazz and Utah Mammoth, to become part of a major $1.8 billion rebuild of the blocks immediately east of the Delta Center. That sale is set to close early next year. The county has said that the Japanese Garden property next to the SEG purchase is not included and will continue to be maintained under county ownership.
Although rumors have suggested that Abravanel Hall or the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art may also experience closures during the redevelopment, the county has not announced any such plans.
