Salt Lake City’s skyline is changing—and so are its inhabitants. Over the past few years, the downtown grid has seen the emergence of several new luxury residential high-rises that are delivering new and enhanced urban experiences. These aren’t your typical stack-and-pack density units. They each represent a luxurious take on city living, embracing high-touch design and state-of-the-art technology to elevate the experience of apartment dwelling.
“These are not affordable developments by any means,” says Nick Norris, director of the Salt Lake City Planning Division. “But that’s not the intent. These developments create a market for those people who can afford it and want to live at that level. Developing these luxury properties, all the way down to your typical midrise building that pops up frequently, all help create a diverse market that actually helps stabilize rent increases.”
To his point—not all communities come with an exorbitant price tag. But that doesn’t mean smaller-scale properties eschew the chance for an extravagant experience. In the case of Journeyman Apartments on 600 S. and 400 W., it’s all about the design.
According to Alisha Olvera, principal designer at Vida Design who championed the project, the interiors were crafted with an aesthetic she dubbed “elegant decay”—ageless, balanced, and inviting, ready to welcome home the community’s adventurous residents.
“It was important for us to understand what ties this building to the buildings surrounding it, as well as what sets it apart,” Olvera says. “There’s an allure and refinement to this design, particularly in the lobby and public spaces, that draws you in.”
Materiality was key in helping this design feel timeless and established. Handcrafted tiles, reeded glass and textile adornments lend an earthen air to common areas. Artisanal light fixtures and sculptural accents echo the appeal of a traveled destination, while modern patterns and creature comforts keep Journeyman firmly rooted in the contemporary rhythm of city living.
In-unit, Olvera and the Vida Design team steered clear of the safe neutrals selected by most apartment developers, instead opting for an organic palette of greens and warm wood tones, creating a soft and welcoming landing for the property’s inhabitants. These thoughtful design vignettes earned Journeyman a BEST Award recognition by the Utah Chapter of IIDA, signaling a new age of design in the world of multi-family residential living.
Rather than building from the ground up, some innovative developments adapt existing landmarks to accommodate the population boom. “Adaptive reuse projects have a profound impact on reducing waste,” says Norris, adding that the city frequently amends zoning codes to encourage building reuse over demolition. “We’d much rather see a building and its materials reused than demolished.”
Telegraph Exchange Lofts on 900 South, for example, is a historic communications hub transformed into high-end townhomes. Between downtown and the avenues, a 1960s-era office building recently stepped into a new life as Seraph, a luxury rental community on 100 South and State. Where many developments center around maximizing density for quick profit, the architects at Hickok Cole used carefully considered layout shifts to create a sophisticated experience for residents.
“We want to provide units that are spatially generous, and live in a way that feels familiar to someone who may be coming from a home and doesn’t want to feel like they’re compromising on breathing room,” says Guilherme Almeida, Design Director and Director of Sustainability/High-Performance Design at Hickok Cole. “We really tried to maximize daylight, views of the Capitol and mountains and the overall liveability of these apartments.”
In common areas, designed by HBA, the interior intentionally steers away from cavernous ceilings echoing lobbies, opting instead for thoughtfully sequestered, intimately functional spaces layered in resonant finishes to envelop visitors, shielding them from the busy city center just outside. In apartments, full walls of windows let in natural light and views of the city’s unmatched landscapes. The building’s exterior pays homage to its roots, while subtly inviting the block into our modern age.
“We kept the main building podium, parking and entry,” says Joseph O’Connor, Senior Associate at Hickok Cole. “The design became a sort of dialogue on how to refresh this building and breathe new life into it, while still allowing it to be received as a cohesive design.” To that end, construction teams removed select concrete panels with surgical precision, allowing contoured glass to shine among the remaining facade of the previous structure.
While adaptive reuse is always in play in an environmentally-conscious locale such as ours, there is obviously no shortage of new construction. One new skyline addition has captured the attention of locals and professionals alike, and represents the highest level of luxury density development in Utah. Astra Tower (89 E. 200 S., SLC) was developed by HKS Architects in collaboration with ROAM Interior Design and Jacobsen Construction, and the LEED-Gold certified building is currently the tallest building in the city at 41 stories. While the aesthetics of the building are visibly spectacular—biophilic motifs and rich, timeless materials adorn every interior space in celebration of Utah’s natural landscapes, while the exterior remains a calm, contemporary presence with sleek glass and sweeping murals—the primary focus of the residences is wellness and sustainability. From an amenity perspective, the property is more luxe hotel than traditional rental high-rise: guest suites, a full spa and robust outdoor entertaining spaces are strategically placed throughout the vertical community, uniting the tower into one robust boutique living experience.
“The idea was to take the activation around the street level, all the way up to the skyline, while also providing a different kind of experience for residents,” says Emir Tursic, Partner and Office Director of HKS Salt Lake City.
Beyond creature comforts, Astra Tower is also equipped with cutting-edge air quality technology. Hospital-grade air filtration and a tailored duct system supply each unit with air free from ubiquitous SLC contaminants, quality that is maintained with in-unit sensors that show residents how their lifestyles may impact pollution at large.
That detail of Astra’s urban engineering provides a look into one of the key differences between high-density and individual unit residential design: In these densely populated properties, architects are challenged to develop not just an aesthetic, but a curated community. Tursic shares that while the record-breaking height and local impact of the Astra Tower wasn’t necessarily their goal, it quickly became a means toward connection with the surrounding community.
“When the scale of the building became clear, we took it as an opportunity to set a model of sustainable urban living.”
Capitalizing on their visibility, the HKS team developed a system of functional LED lights for Astra’s exterior, now used to signify daily air quality readings to the community at large. At Seraph, neighborhood development was always at the forefront, and the design intentionally includes retail space to increase walkability and pride of place along its historic block. “We understood that we needed to do as much as possible to provide ground-level activation,” says Almeida. “We had to deliver the framework to craft a downtown that is as vibrant as possible.”
The thoughtful development and unique ambiance of each of these new properties show that the modern age of luxury urban living isn’t just about aesthetics. Rather, these projects are all part of a broader transformation of not only where, but how Salt Lakers live. And for a community so adept at championing our locale, they bring us into a new age — one of progress and growth, and living beautifully amid both.
