Is a new Trader Joe’s coming to Salt Lake City?

Rumors have been circulating about a new Trader Joe’s grocery store coming to Salt Lake City, thanks to a commercial building permit application that appears to be in “pre-screening” with the city.

However, according to a Trader Joe’s representative, no such store appears to be confirmed for the city “at this time.”

According to information available from the city, the application mentions the address 2160 S. 700 East, which is currently a Pep Boys auto parts store in the same parking lot as Dee’s restaurant in Sugar House. Under “project description,” it says a Trader Joe’s is “in prescreening; converting location to a Trader Joe’s grocery store.”

When The Salt Lake Tribune reached out to Trader Joe’s for confirmation, a company representative replied, “We are actively looking at hundreds of neighborhoods across the country as we hope to open more new neighborhood stores each year. At this time, we do not have a new location confirmed in Salt Lake City.”

“We list all of the stores that are opening soon on our website,” the statement continued.

The rumors of a Trader Joe’s in Draper circulated for months before the company confirmed the location in October 2022. That location opened earlier this year.

Not all such rumors pan out. At the same time the talk about the Draper location was brewing, there also were rumors that Trader Joe’s might move into Salt Lake City’s Brickyard Plaza, in a former OfficeMax store. Those rumors have, so far, proved false.

There’s also an effort in Kaysville, launched in May, to bring a Trader Joe’s there. “Kaysville is poised to be the ideal spot for Trader Joe’s,” the website reads.

Trader Joe’s has four locations in Utah: Orem, Cottonwood Heights, Draper and on 400 South in Salt Lake City.