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Provo City » Current Issues » Southgate Center
Southgate Center
Proposed Southgate Center Site Plan | Proposed Phasing of Golf Course Redesign | Southgate Center Rendering | Boyer Company Website | Retail Leasing Agent Information
On November 15, 2007, Mayor Lewis K. Billings and representatives of the Boyer Company announced plans for the Southgate Center, a regional shopping center located at the University Avenue/1860 South intersection immediately south of the Novell building.
 Southgate will include 59 acres along the east frontage of I-15–the western most portion of the Reserve at East Bay Golf Course. The center will include 459,000 square feet of new retail space and 225,000 square feet of office space. As a comparison, the Provo Towne Centre Mall has 800,000 square feet of leasable space.
Southgate will be developed by the Boyer Company. Boyer has letters of intent from several national retailers including Sports Authority, Petsmart, Circuit City and Target, which will be the anchor tenant of the center.
Provo City owns the 59 acre parcel involved and will sell its interest in the property to the Boyer Company under the terms of a developer agreement. As a part of the purchase agreement, the City will be responsible to provide rough grading of the site to prepare it for development, removal of lakes and replacement of designated wetlands in the area. Several holes of the current Reserve at East Bay golf course are located on this parcel, which will necessitate redesign of the golf course.
Impact on the Golf Course
 The development of the Southgate Center will require the elimination of the current executive nine-hole golf course at the Reserve at East Bay. The remaining portion of the course will be reconfigured in two phases to continue to allow 18 holes of play at all times during and after construction. A first phase will involve moving four holes to the location of the existing executive course. A second phase will build four new holes on the former Kuhni property with a new signature island hole.
Other improvements to the remaining course will include removal of some of the water hazards on the existing course, improvements to the driving range and continuous golf cart paths where feasible. The course redesign has been completed by William Howard Neff, the original golf course architect on the Reserve at East Bay, and the golf course professional and superintendent have been consulted in the design effort and are supportive.
Environmental Issues
The Reserve at East Bay Golf Course was built on the site of a former sanitary landfill in Provo, and at the time the course was developed, lakes and water features were installed which eventually became designated wetlands and riparian habitats. As a part of the Southgate project, the City will replace existing designated wetlands with a new wetlands in the area of the Despain Conservation Easement near Utah Lake north of Center Street. The new wetlands will be of much higher quality and provide much improved habitat for waterfowl. Provo City has secured a wetlands management easement from the Despain family and construction on the new wetlands is already underway. The US Army Corps of Engineers has done preliminary review of the new wetlands proposal; the formal Federal designation and permitting process is underway.
Council Actions Required
While the City has entered into a developer agreement with the Boyer Company, a number of important actions will still be required. The Municipal Council will need to formally designate the 59 acres as surplus property and to ratify the development agreement between the City and Boyer. It is anticipated that this action will be considered by the Council at its November 20 study meeting and the December 4 Council meeting. In addition, Provo City will request a general plan amendment and Boyer will apply for rezoning to a shopping center zoning designation.
Schedule
Work will begin this fall on grading and other work to prepare for construction. Reconfiguration of the golf course for both phase I and II will begin November 21 and phase I will be completed by the time the course opens next spring; phase II in Fall 2009. The Center is anticipated to begin construction in August 2008 and open for business in July 2009.
Why the Southgate Center?
Discussions about commercial development near this important freeway interchange have been underway for many years. But only recently, cost-effective building technologies allowing construction on a former landfill site have become available.
 The Southgate Center will Secure Provo’s south end retail base that has been established in the East Bay Business Center and the Provo Towne Centre Mall area. Keeping this important retail center strong and vibrant is critical to the City’s tax base. Providing a broader base of national retail shopping opportunities in Provo closer to home will save Provo shoppers time and money and keep retail sales tax dollars here in Provo.
A side benefit of this new development is a new golf course experience to revitalize the Reserve at East Bay golf course and reduce overall maintenance costs. Modifications to the course will make it more playable for golfers of all skill levels. Improvements to the driving range and cart paths and the creation of signature island hole will bring new interest to the course.
An additional benefit has been the creation of the new wetlands area near Utah Lake on property currently under a conservation easement. This new wetlands area will significantly enhance the quality of waterfowl habitat over the existing marginal wetlands at the golf course.
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