St. John Properties Breaks Ground on SLC Campus

By Keith Loria, Contributing Editor

Rendering of Grove Tower

St. John Properties broke ground on Valley Grove, a 62-acre master-planned development in Pleasant Grove City, Utah, as part of a $250 million investment the company is making in the area.

“We are thrilled with the pro-business climate and warm reception we’ve received in Utah,” Edward St. John, St. John Properties’ chairman & founder, told Commercial Property Executive. “We strive every day to provide places for great companies to grow their businesses, increase employment, generate profits and pay taxes.”

The Valley Grove development will consist of more than one million square feet of Class A office, restaurant, retail and hospitality space, and will include more than 2,000 trees, which will accompany a selection of LEED designed buildings for maximum energy and water savings and minimize negative environmental impact.

Project impact

Valley Grove is anticipated to generate more than $800 million in tax revenue to the state, county and Pleasant Grove, while hosting more than 7,000 employees.

“The appeal of this location was centrality in Utah County, incredible traffic infrastructure and a hole in the market that wasn’t being serviced,” Daniel Thomas, regional partner for St. John Properties Utah, told CPE. “We saw a hole in the heart of Utah County, almost half way between Lehi and Provo where there was a lack of amenities and Class A office.”

St. John Properties is already developing Grove Tower, a new 190,000-square-foot office building as part of the community, which is expected to be completed by the end of the year. Coldwell Banker Commercial Advisors will expand and relocate to Valley Grove’s Grove Tower, taking nearly 16,000 square feet.

“With the congestion and traffic challenges of Lehi, we knew there was an untapped demand in other portions of North Utah County where alternatives to office and retail would be well received,” Thomas said. “Pleasant Grove was the perfect destination for Valley Grove.”

According to Thomas, the company looks 40-50 years into the future for developments and investments with a potential impact well beyond the typical 5-to 10-year cycle. 

“Valley Grove will be a central destination for people and businesses well into the future,” he said. “With proximity to I-15 and North County Blvd, we saw an opportunity to avoid many of the infrastructure challenges that are plaguing the Wasatch Front. We saw a location where people from all over Utah County could have easy access to and from so they spend less time in traffic and more time with family in these great outdoors.”