SALT LAKE CITY — A new report claims downtown Salt Lake City is growing—with more visitors, more spending and more people calling it home. But while the numbers point to a stronger economy, some say their experience on the ground tells a different story.
Every few weeks, a man named Robert leaves his home in Rose Park and heads to Ken Sanders Rare Books, where he trades boxes and old comics for store credit. He said coming downtown these days has become more complicated.
After being assaulted near a Trax station, Robert now takes a different route, and even asked FOX 13 not to use his last name for fear of reprisal.
He thinks the problem downtown is imbalance.
"I think you have the extremes—the people without the money and the people with the money," he said.
Robert's experience offers another perspective on the economic report released Wednesday by the Downtown Alliance, which highlights how downtown is attracting more visitors, more entertainment and more investment.
"The downtown economy is a social economy. We see that in venues, restaurants and bars," explained Dee Brewer with the Downtown Alliance.
According to the report, more than 30 million customers visited downtown last year;
60 percent of them weren’t living or working here. Ticket sales at entertainment venues rose more than 16 percent, and business is said to be booming with new development.
But the growth isn’t being felt equally.
Several longtime restaurants have closed, even as new ones open.
"The daily transactions in restaurants and bars, small dance companies—that's the drip irrigation of the downtown economy," shared Brewer.
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall believes downtown is continuing its shift away from a traditional 9-to-5 economy.
"People are coming downtown for different reasons. They're coming downtown in bigger numbers," the mayor said.
While the report measures economic activity, city leaders say safety remains part of downtown's success. Mendenhall said crime is down, but acknowledged there's still work to do.
"That doesn't mean [crime is] gone. And even if one [person] feels unsafe on our streets, it's unsatisfying to us," Mendenhall said.
For Robert, the success downtown is about more than economic indicators.
"You have to be out here experiencing it," he said. "You have the numbers. You can have numbers all day."
