Despite continued community pushback, plans are moving forward to demolish Granite High School in South Salt Lake to make way for single-family homes.
The city’s planning commission approved a developer’s proposal with a unanimous vote Thursday night.
The developer, Garbett Homes, plans to use a little more than half of the schools 27 acres for the new homes.
“There’s a lot of people that want to live here," said Jacob Ballstaedt, speaking for the company. "They want to live close to town, they want to live close to an urban area. They want to buy homes that are built by a sustainable builder.”
The plans have gone through a number of revisions in response to community feedback.
Many South Salt Lake residents have spoken out against developing the land at all, hoping instead that the 110 year old high school—which has been closed since 2009—could be restored and repurposed.
“Not everyone’s happy and we understand that but we’re doing the best we can," said Ballstaedt.
The approved plans include green space that will be easily accessible from the street, in order to have a public park feel to it.
Merili Carter, representing Granite High Alumni, spoke out against the proposal. She said she was in shock following the decision but that not all hope is lost.
"The city council still could vote against this," said Carter. "Maybe the mayor could veto it.”
And if not, Carter is hoping the developers will work with her to preserve at least a portion of the historic buildings.
Garbett Homes also plans to develop the remainder of the land for commercial use but left that proposal for a future date.
