On Wednesday night, the Planning Commission gave the LDS Church permission to build a 415-foot-tall condo tower, which will be 30 to 35 stories tall, on 100 South as part of City Creek Center. It also endorsed three other residential high-rises, ranging in height from 125 feet to 185 feet, that also will be taller than current code allows.

“We believe that residential is the lifeblood of revitalizing downtown,” said Mark Gibbons, president of Property Reserve Inc., the church's real-estate development arm. He said church planners have visited “numerous” cities, such as Indianapolis and Cleveland, as they planned City Creek. “Cities have told us that having full-time, 24-7 residents in the downtown is more important to their vitality than anything.”

The extra height will allow the church to build 319 condos, compared with the 96 it would have been limited to without the additional stories.

The church is constructing the high-rises as part of a new mixed-use project to replace the Crossroads Plaza and ZCMI Center malls, along with a vacant block to the east. Most of City Creek Center, with housing and fashion retail, will open in 2011. The 415-foot skyscraper, however, will open later when the market demands it. Gibbons said the church is reducing the amount of retail and office space at City Creek to make room for housing.

Because the four towers will stand in the middle of the blocks, the church needed city approval.

At such locations, buildings are normally limited to 100 feet to protect views of the mountains and to ensure sunlight penetrates the blocks.

The Planning Division supports the church's taller towers. Doug Dansie, a city planner, said the 100-foot rule is not “hard and fast.” He noted the former Tribune building, at 143 S. Main, is taller than 100 feet, even though it stands in the middle of the block.

On Wednesday, the owner of the Crandall Building, which sits on the corner of Main Street and 100 South, withdrew his objection to the 415-foot-tower. He was concerned about sunlight.

“Having this type of project built in downtown is just a great, great thing. We're very supportive of it,” said John Crandall, who said he represented the owner.

The commission's vote is final.

hmay@sltrib.com