If you’ve walked through downtown lately, you’ve seen it. Or rather, you’ve seen the cranes. The Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake City landmark is currently wrapped in scaffolding, surrounded by deep pits, and looks more like a massive engineering experiment than a place of worship. It’s been this way since 2019.
People ask me all the time if it’s actually going to be finished by the new 2026 deadline. Honestly? It’s a massive undertaking. We aren’t just talking about a fresh coat of paint or some new carpets here. This is a total seismic overhaul of a building that was finished in 1893 after forty years of manual labor. They’re literally lifting a 200-million-pound granite structure into the air to put rollers under it.
The Granite Mystery and the Pioneers
When Brigham Young looked at the ground in 1847 and said "here we will build a temple to our God," he wasn’t thinking about logistics. He was thinking about permanence. The pioneers spent decades hauling massive quartz monzonite blocks—basically a type of granite—from Little Cottonwood Canyon.
Think about that for a second.
They didn't have trucks. They had oxen. It took four days just to bring one stone to the site. If a stone cracked? Too bad. Start over. This is why the walls at the base are nine feet thick. They built it to last for eternity, but they didn't know about the Wasatch Fault.
The original foundation was actually made of sandstone, which they later replaced because it wasn't holding up. Imagine digging up a massive foundation by hand just because you realized the material was wrong. That’s the kind of obsession with detail we’re dealing with here.
What’s Actually Happening Behind the Construction Fences?
The biggest buzzword you’ll hear regarding the Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake City project is "base isolation."
It sounds technical, but it’s basically putting the entire building on giant shock absorbers. The Salt Lake Valley is overdue for a big one. Geologists at the University of Utah have been warning about the "Big One" for decades. If a 7.0 magnitude earthquake hits today, an unreinforced masonry building like the temple would likely crumble.
To fix this, crews have been digging underneath those nine-foot-thick walls. They’ve installed 98 base isolators. These are huge layers of rubber and steel that allow the ground to move up to five feet in any direction while the temple itself stays relatively still.
It's terrifying to watch. They had to "jack" the building up. You can’t just lift a granite cathedral with a crane. You have to do it inch by inch, supporting the weight on temporary steel shoring while you pour new concrete footings.
The Surprise Discoveries Under the Dirt
You can't dig up a 130-year-old site without finding some weird stuff.
During the excavation, workers found old tunnels, primitive drainage systems, and even bits of old tools. But the most significant thing they found was the state of the original footings. Some parts of the foundation were literally just rubble and mortar. It worked for the 19th century, but it wouldn't have survived another fifty years of modern seismic activity.
They also found that the granite wasn't just sitting there. It was shifting.
The Controversy of the Interior Changes
Some people are actually pretty upset about the renovation.
Specifically, the "live act" endowment rooms are gone. For decades, the Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake City experience involved moving from room to room—the Garden Room, the World Room, the Terrestrial Room—with hand-painted murals on the walls. These murals were masterpieces of 19th-century art.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that these murals would be removed or, in some cases, preserved and moved. The goal was to increase the temple's capacity and make it more like other modern temples where you stay in one room.
It's a trade-off.
On one hand, you lose that historical "time capsule" feeling. On the other hand, you make the building accessible to thousands more people every year. The church leaders, like President Russell M. Nelson, have emphasized that the structural integrity and the ability to serve more people take priority over the aesthetic traditions of the past.
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Why You Can't Visit Right Now
If you're planning a trip to Utah this year, don't expect to go inside. The entire Temple Square is a construction zone. Even the North Visitors' Center was demolished to make way for better views and more open space.
You can still see the Tabernacle and the Assembly Hall, but the main attraction is strictly off-limits. They even had to remove the iconic Angel Moroni statue from the top of the central spire after a 5.7 magnitude earthquake in 2020 shook his trumpet loose. That was a bit of a wake-up call for everyone involved.
The Economic Impact on Downtown Salt Lake
This isn't just a religious project. It's a massive economic driver.
Thousands of workers are on-site every day. Nearby businesses at City Creek Center and along Main Street rely on the foot traffic that Temple Square usually brings in—roughly five million visitors a year. That’s more than all five of Utah’s national parks combined.
With the temple closed, those numbers have dipped. However, the renovation of the surrounding plazas is designed to make the area even more tourist-friendly. They are adding more green space, more trees, and better walkways to connect Temple Square with the rest of the city.
Basically, they are turning a religious site into a world-class urban park.
The Timeline: Will It Actually Open in 2026?
Construction delays are a meme at this point.
The original finish date was 2024. Then it was 2025. Now we are looking at 2026. The complexity of working with 130-year-old stone while trying to preserve historical integrity is a nightmare for project managers.
Every time they move a stone, they find three more things that need fixing. The plumbing was ancient. The electrical was a fire hazard. The air conditioning was basically nonexistent in some parts of the building.
Actionable Tips for Visiting the Area Today
If you still want to see the Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake City area while it's under construction, here is how to do it without wasting your time:
- Go to the Conference Center Roof: This is the best-kept secret. The roof of the LDS Conference Center across the street has a massive garden and offers a "birds-eye" view of the construction. You can see the base isolation work and the scale of the pit.
- Check the South Visitor Center: While much of the square is closed, there are temporary exhibits that show 3D models of what the finished temple will look like.
- Visit the FamilySearch Library: It’s right next door and remains open. It’s the largest genealogical library in the world and it’s free. It’s a great way to escape the construction noise.
- Park at City Creek: Don't try to find street parking. The City Creek Center parking garage is right across the street and the first two hours are free.
- Walk the Perimeter: The construction fences have high-quality renderings and historical photos. It’s actually a pretty decent self-guided walking tour if you’re into engineering.
The Salt Lake Temple Salt Lake City isn't just a building; it's the heart of the city's identity. Seeing it stripped down to its bones is a bit jarring, but it’s a necessary step to make sure it’s still standing in 2126. When those doors finally open again, the public open house will likely be the biggest event in Utah’s history since the 2002 Olympics.
Just be ready to wait in a very long line.
Keep an eye on the official Temple Square updates. They usually release drone footage every few months so you can see the progress without having to dodge a cement truck. It's a slow process, but for a building meant to last forever, what's a few extra years?
The work continues. The granite stays. The city waits.
Be sure to plan your visit for the shoulder seasons—late spring or early fall—once the project nears completion, as the Salt Lake City summers can be brutal for walking around a construction-heavy downtown area.
Check the official Church Newsroom for the exact dates of the public open house, which will be announced about six months before the completion. This will be the only time in your life you can walk through the interior without being a member of the faith.