^{(Michael Mangum | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Salt Lake LDS temple is shown through the window of a ninth floor condo at the City Creek Condos in downtown Salt Lake City on Monday, April 18, 2011.}

City Creek: Luxury living, temple views and 'new urbanism'

For a 1,900 square-foot unit with a partial view of Temple Square, he named the imaginary clients “Bob and Linda,” envisioning a wealthy couple approaching retirement.

“All the kids have moved on and Bob and Linda have traveled the world,” explains Dickamore, creative director at Denton House, an interior design and architecture firm. “They have grandkids and they bought this place to be their second home. It will be their primary home when they retire.”

A few steps away from their door is the 900-square-foot abode of “David and Veronica,” a young couple with a “hip vibe to their life,” Dickamore says. “They like things simplified and streamlined.” And judging from the impossible tidiness of the model, the couple is “also a little bit OCD,” he says, smiling.

The two model units, whose interiors were designed by Salt Lake-based Denton House, offer a glimpse into the unexpected complications designers faced in selling and decorating these upscale condos. These urban homes are a key part of the rising multi-use development that will buffer Temple Square from the rest of the city.

On one hand, City Creek represents The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ monumental foray into “new urbanism,” with its emphasis on a walkable downtown where residents live, work and play.

On the other hand, local designers say City Creek’s Portland-based developers and architects, familiar with the Northwest’s urban scene, were thrown off-balance. They were surprised that buyers of City Creek condos tilted toward older couples wanting to retire near the spiritual center of their faith, rather than young professionals seeking first homes in a urban environment.

“Initially, their market studies led them to believe they would have a lot of younger people,” says Denton House founder Rebecca Buchan. “They’ve encountered an older demographic than they expected.”

Instead of young professionals who want to live and work downtown surrounded by restaurants, clubs, museums and other amenities, buyers at City Creek tend to be aging baby boomers in their 50s and 60s. The condos are considered second homes or weekend retreats, she says.

No one familiar with Utah, of course, would surprised. After all, these are pricey properties: Bob and Linda’s condo goes for $1 million, not counting the interior design, while a full-on Temple view costs upward of $2 million.

Even urban hipsters such as David and Veronica would spend $400,000 before interior decorators arrive, because of the amenity of location: Their 900-square foot condo is only footsteps away from Temple Square.

Furthermore, the city, in part because of the disruption of City Creek construction and the LDS Church’s restrictions on alcohol, has a way to go before downtown offers the urban amenities attractive to most young professionals.

In response to questions, Dale Bills, spokesman for the church-owned City Creek Reserve Inc., replied by email: “CCRI and its consultants always anticipated a broad range of interest, from young professionals to empty nesters.”

City Creek’s clients, so far, appear to be LDS members who want to live and retire near one of the church’s holiest sites. Denton House has yet to work with a non-Mormon client in connection with City Creek, Buchan says.

Moreover, designing for this older LDS group brings challenges, Buchan says. About 90 percent of the time, the condos have two residents, she says, but occupancy explodes during the remaining 10 percent.

“Especially on holidays and during [LDS Church] Conference, these things are really full,” Buchan says. “They want to have a lot of sleeping spaces. We had to get really creative in putting in bunk-bed spaces to sleep a large family.”