The project will be unveiled today during a private luncheon at Thanksgiving Point where Gehry will speak about his philosophies on urban living and design, said Brent Wilhite, a spokesman for entrepreneur Brandt Anderson.

Anderson, founder and chief executive officer of Provo business development firm G Code Ventures, did not return a telephone call seeking comment Thursday. But his company's Web site says Gehry was hired to design a "high-end lifestyle shopping center and restaurants, as well as a five-star hotel and residential community" near Point of the Mountain in northern Utah County.

"When completed, this Gehry collaboration in Lehi, Utah, promises to become an architectural icon of the western United States and marks the first time Frank Gehry has agreed to work on a project in the state," said the Web site.

Lehi Mayor Howard Johnson said Thursday the development has not been formally proposed to local government, but that he has known about the basic plans for months.

"I would think the whole area would be thrilled with it," Johnson said.

Gehry, 76, holds the Pritzger Architecture Prize, the world's premiere architecture honor. His buildings include the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. Many of his projects have become tourist attractions. He is now designing an addition to the Philadelphia Museum of Art that will be underground.

Anderson, 29, owns The Lakes at Sleepy Ridge, a residential real estate project surrounding the Sleepy Ridge Golf Course in Orem. He is general partner and majority owner of the National Basketball League's Development League for Utah, which prepares players and coaches for the NBA.

So-called "lifestyle shopping centers," such as the one proposed by Anderson are growing in popularity, said Jon Anderson, a Utah County specialist with Commerce CRG, a commercial brokerage. Lifestyle centers include specialty shops, restaurants and theaters or other entertainment components, most of which are accessible by outdoor walkways.

"It's a nationwide trend," he said.

Two of the best known lifestyle centers in Utah are The Gateway shopping center in downtown Salt Lake City, which is surrounded by apartments, condominiums and offices. The Riverwoods in Provo is another example.

At least two other lifestyle centers are being planned in Pleasant Grove and Lehi, said Anderson of Commerce CRG.

---

* TODD HOLLINGSHEAD contributed to this report.