The opening of the renovated Salt Lake Temple is more than a year away, but Salt Lake City and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are already planning for the huge visitor crowds expected to flood downtown for the historic event.
Estimates indicate between 3 million and 5 million visitors could come to Utah’s capital to see inside the iconic six-spired house of worship, which has not been open to the general public since just before its original 1893 dedication.
The church is proposing a seven-month fenced closure to vehicular traffic for public sections of North Temple and West Temple immediately adjacent to the pioneer-era landmark. Those closures could last from early spring of 2027 to October, according to emerging details.
(Christopher Cherrington | The Salt Lake Tribune)
Documents sent Thursday to the City Council by Mayor Erin Mendenhall also mention additional single-lane closures along North Temple between West Temple and 200 West; one block on South Temple west of West Temple; and one block of West Temple from North Temple to 200 North.
“Based on anticipated attendance, event activities, and traffic volume,” the mayor’s transmittal says, “the street closures will support orderly crowd management, mitigate traffic congestion, and allow for the proper placement of safety infrastructure such as barricades, emergency access, signage, and accessibility accommodations.”
Under the city’s existing rules, the church would effectively lease the road segments for roughly $2.3 million while they remained fenced and closed.
The church plans to showcase its yearslong overhaul and seismic fortification of the 132-year-old temple from April to October 2027.
Crews and engineers for the Utah-based faith began the renovation in 2019, focusing on preserving, modernizing and seismically upgrading the 19th-century structure, as well as updating surrounding features of Temple Square in the heart of the city’s downtown.
Church spokesperson Candice Madsen told the church-owned Deseret News “safety is our top priority.” The proposed road closures, according to Madsen, are part of “comprehensive safety and security measures” the faith was developing with the city and state “to ensure a memorable experience for visitors while minimizing the impact on the surrounding community.”
Under state law, the city is required to hold a public hearing on the proposed closures and pass an ordinance detailing what’s planned. The moves also would require sign-off from the Utah Department of Transportation.
Mendenhall’s spokesperson Andrew Wittenberg said the open house celebrations are expected to draw more than 20,000 visitors daily at peak, generating “significant economic activity throughout downtown.”
The closures, Wittenberg said in a statement, would help “reduce congestion, manage large pedestrian volumes and prevent accidents.”
“Utah’s capital city is known for welcoming large-scale events — from the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games to national festivals and conventions," the mayor’s spokesperson said. “In every case, Salt Lake City’s top priority is public safety, and the Salt Lake Temple reopening celebration is no exception.”
Church officials have also committed to additional bus drop-off areas, special pedestrian zones and crossings, and other transportation moves during that seven-month window, Wittenberg said, “to help reduce traffic impacts for residents, workers and visitors.”