The LDS Church is one step closer to finalizing its downtown Salt Lake City redevelopment plans after striking a deal that empties nearly all of the Key Bank Tower in preparation for demolition.

After more than one year of negotiations, the law firm of Van Cott, Bagley, Cornwall & McCarthy agreed on Thursday to leave the aging 300,000 square foot office tower at 50 S. Main St. and move to the Beneficial Life Tower at 36 S. State St., attorney Stephen Swindle said.

Mark Lundgren, an office specialist with commercial brokerage NAI Utah in Salt Lake City, called the deal a significant development in the church's plans for downtown.

"Their departure clears one of the larger obstacles in relation with what the church is trying to do," he said.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints said it had no comment. Demolishing the building, which is attached to the ailing Crossroads Plaza mall, has reportedly been part of the church's multimillion-dollar redevelopment plan for Crossroads and neighboring ZCMI Center mall.

The terms of Thursday's agreement were not disclosed, but Swindle said the church will begin next month preparing the Beneficial Life Tower for the law firm, which will move in the spring.

"We're extremely excited about the new space," Swindle said.

Although the church and the law firm had been talking for more than one year, neither side could agree on the terms of such a costly move. About one year ago, Van Cott hired commercial broker Tab Cornelison with Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT to represent them in the negotiations.

Cornelison said the church eventually made a deal the law firm could agree with.

With Van Cott agreeing to vacate the building, one of the last holdouts is the law firm Richards Brandt, which spent a significant amount of money renovating and upgrading its space. Representatives of the law firm were not available Thursday for comment.

The church has not officially announced when it will raze Key Bank Tower or even that it has committed to do so due to lease negotiations.

The LDS Church also has not spoken publicly about much else in regards to its overall redevelopment of the area.

But over the past year, it has quietly been emptying the Key Bank Tower. Tenants who have left or are leaving include Skywest Airlines, HJ & Associates, Citicourt Reporting Group, the law firms of Berman & Savage and Christensen and Jensen and the accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche.

Tenant Key Bank said Thursday it hopes its negotiations with the church "will be concluded very soon," said spokesman Jack Sparks.

The difficult task of trying to empty Key Bank Tower is only part of the monumental task of redeveloping its downtown property.

The church must keep anchor tenant Nordstrom, which it has promised a new store, happy while trying to negotiate with a number of smaller tenants.

In July, the church overcame another major obstacle by working out an agreement with Utah Woolen Mills.

The church wanted to move the small retailer, which had a long term lease and resisted many of the church's ideas for relocating it.

The church eventually agreed to keep the Salt Lake City retailer on South Temple during and after renovation of the downtown malls.

lesley@sltrib.com