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Derided by some, it divided many in the community for more than a year. Now, it will bridge both halves of a $1.5 billion mega-development designed to breathe dynamism into a moribund downtown.
The Salt Lake City Council on Tuesday approved a Main Street sky bridge for the LDS Church's City Creek Center. And the margin - 6-1 - was wider than expected.
One councilman choked back tears. Several said they will remember the vote all their lives. And most agreed the move will be a catalyst for the capital to forget "the former fortress" of malls that dominated downtown for 30 years.
New Councilman Luke Garrott was the lone holdout, saying, "I don't think you develop downtown through mega-projects." He also argued that the owner is more interested in private profit, which a skywalk will enhance, than a revitalization of downtown.
"We want it to be invisible and transparent, and on the other hand we want to make it a landmark for the ages," Garrott said about the skywalk. "I don't think it can be both things."
But the rest of the council, including former bridge critics Soren Simonsen and J.T. Martin, disagreed.
"The sky bridge has been criticized as something that will kill our Main Street. Frankly, I don't believe that it will," said Councilman Eric Jergensen. "Rather than being a negative thing for our city, it will be a positive thing, almost iconic."
A surprise yes vote, Simonsen said he toiled with the decision as much as any he had ever made. He cast the only no vote last year when the council amended the city's master plan for the bridge. On Tuesday he called the design "remarkable," "beautiful" and "elegant."
But he also pushed for legislative intent designed to bolster vibrancy on the streets surrounding the project. "I hope the [future City Creek] story that is written will be a good one," he said, sounding reluctant.
Bruce Heckman, vice president of development for developer Taubman Centers, said he is "quite gratified" with the vote that settled 18 months of public debate.
"It's a clear-cut expression to the department stores that they want the project," Heckman said. "It wasn't a split vote."
Mayor Ralph Becker praised the developer for giving the project a "complete overhaul" over the past year. He said he still opposes sky bridges - "this doesn't change that view" - but said much was done to mitigate its impact.
"My job now is to get an agreement that best reflects the conditions [the City Council] put on the project."
Those conditions got longer with a series of legislative intent statements. They include keeping the same City Creek design standards on the block slated for the Harmons grocery store, working for a mid-block crosswalk on State Street to connect City Creek with Social Hall Avenue, addressing the entrance to Macy's, which is below street level, and enhancing pedestrian life on West Temple, perhaps by adding canopies, benches and vendors.
Council chairwoman Jill Remington Love said agreeing to a bridge also gave the council significant say on City Creek's overall design. And that input will make it blend better with the rest of downtown, she argued.
Martin, who pledged to oppose the bridge during last summer's campaign, said that was before he understood the project. He defended his flip but said he hopes his kids won't ridicule him in 20 years.
"It will give Main Street an excellent opportunity to become what it was," he said.
Construction of the skywalk at 50 S. Main St. is expected to start in the spring of 2011, according to the developer, with completion expected a year later. City Creek Center's glass walkway will be completely transparent in the center, while etchings of grass across the rest will be added to symbolize a creek setting.