Business owners protest request to rezone Utah swap meet

Business owners are urging the West Valley City planning commission to recommend against a rezoning petition for the site of a long-running swap meet and drive-in theater.

State of play: Utah-based EDGEhomes filed a request in May to rezone 3688 South Redwood Road from commercial to residential to develop 308 condominiums, townhomes and single-family lots.

Why it matters: The West Valley market has served as a small-business incubator and a cultural hub for working-class immigrants and Latino communities for decades.

What they're saying: "It's not just a center for business," Beto Conejo, a 25-year-old business owner and artist who has been assisting in organizing efforts to save the swap meet, told Axios. "It's a center for culture."

• Many of the 500 to 700 business owners who set up shop each week hold full-time jobs, but still rely on the additional income, he said.
• Vendors sell everything from construction gear and Pokemon collectibles to imported goods and produce.
• EDGEhomes did not respond to Axios' request for comment.

The other side : In a letter to the city, the president of DeAnza Land and Leisure Corp., the company that owns the site, said they are selling the property because the theater and swap meet are "unprofitable" and no longer offer a good return.

• The statement also blamed the drive-in's decline on the COVID-19 pandemic and the Hollywood writer's strike for the "lack of quality movies."
• Selling the site once the land value increased and the drive-in was no longer financially viable was always in the original business plan, the president said.
• The swap meet and drive-in will remain open after the sale until home builders break ground.

Context: The drive-in and market predate the city itself, which was incorporated in 1980, West Valley City's community development director Steve Pastorik told Axios.

• Pastorik said he wasn't aware of any discussions to find an alternative location for the swap meet if it is forced to move.

Between the lines: It's not the first time the 26-acre lot has been eyed by a developer.

• In 2021, a California developer pulled its rezoning application for the property after business owners protested.

What's next: The seven-member commission will meet on Wednesday at 4pm at city hall and decide whether to recommend the zoning change to the West Valley City Council.

• More than 14,000 people have signed a Change.org petition to save the swap meet .
• Multiple business owners and activists plan to speak out against the rezoning proposal.

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