Developer Steve Aste hopes to team with the city to transform one of those sections - 12 blocks between State and Main from 2100 South to 2500 South - into a thriving mixed-use, mini-community called Market Station.

"It's tired and needs a new use," Aste said of the land long used for light-industrial purposes.

Aste is managing member of Park City- and San Francisco-based Cascade Development Partners.

In late June, he and Mel Heath opened the 76-unit Residences at Central Pointe, a mix of urban condominiums and street-level retail bays near the southwest corner of 2100 South and Main.

Now Aste is eager to launch the second phase - the transit-oriented Market Station, which would feature hundreds of living units, ranging from "Boston-type Brownstones to industrial lofts and everything in between."

"The architectural styles will be varied but coordinated," rather than sterile or cookie cutter, Aste said.

The residential component could top out at 11 stories, he said.

The plans are ambitious. A streetcar system - similar to Portland, Ore.'s 6-mile loop - would link this newly renovated area to the re-emerging Sugar House commercial district to the east.

"It would serve as an arterial between the two cities," said South Salt Lake City Attorney David Carlson.

South Salt Lake already connects to the north and south portions of the valley via light rail, with a TRAX station conveniently located within shouting distance of the Central Pointe condos and the proposed Market Station.

The more slow-moving streetcar system, capable of stopping every few blocks, would encourage walkability throughout this corridor, Carlson said.

By mid-November, the Utah Transit Authority, South Salt Lake and Salt Lake City will seek proposals for preliminary engineering of the streetcar component.

Streetcar financing, Carlson said, could come from a variety of sources, including grants, private-sector contributions and redevelopment funds.

Some area businesses welcome the plans, hoping to coexist with the project and benefit from the influx of people it will bring.

"Things at this end of State Street are a little stale," said Jeff Hoggan, store manager for Boaters World at 2150 S. State St. "This will give it a face-lift and hopefully will be good for us."

Mary Tzakis - who co-owns The Mad Greek with her father at 50 E. 2100 South - also supports the project as long as her eatery can stay where it is.

cmckitrick@sltrib.com

Meeting Tonight

* At 7 P.M., the South Salt Lake City Council, in its role as the Redevelopment Agency Board, will consider designating the 12-acre "Market Station" site as a redevelopment- project area.

* WHERE: City Hall, 220 E. Morris Ave. (2430 South), Suite 200.