Pull to refresh
Logo
What Changed
Following Why Sign Up
Affordable homes open at former Latter-day Saint gym in Salt Lake City

Affordable homes open at former Latter-day Saint gym in Salt Lake City

Built World Salt Lake City, UT local

Church help turns underused Liberty Wells property into housing, Tribune reports

Today: Affordable homes open at former Liberty Wells gym

Overview

Updated 40 minutes ago

An old Latter-day Saint gym and its ball fields in Salt Lake City’s Liberty Wells neighborhood now hold affordable homes. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints helped make the conversion possible, the Salt Lake Tribune reported on Nov. 15, 2026.

The project turns underused religious property into housing. It also tests whether churches can become regular suppliers of land for below-market homes.

Why it matters

If other faith-owned properties follow, churches could become a steady source of affordable homes in Salt Lake City.

Last Monday's email for Salt Lake City, UT

Sent Nov 9. It carried:

Get next Monday's: one short email a week. Free. Unsubscribe in one click.

Questions about this story

Free account needed to ask — your question is kept and asked for you right after sign-up. Answers are public.

No questions yet — be the first to ask.

Key Indicators

1
Former church gym site converted
The Liberty Wells Center gym and adjacent ball fields were redeveloped into affordable homes.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

Sign up to generate historical perspectives on this story.

Log in Sign Up

Organizations Involved

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Religious organization
Helped make the affordable housing conversion possible

The church is tied to the old Liberty Wells Center gym and helped turn the property into affordable homes.
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City
Municipal government
Location of the Liberty Wells conversion

Salt Lake City is where the former Liberty Wells Center property now holds affordable homes.

Timeline

1 event Latest: Today

  1. Affordable homes open at former Liberty Wells gym

    Today Housing

    The Salt Lake Tribune reported that the old gym and ball fields now include affordable homes, with help from the Latter-day Saint church.

Scenarios

1

Church and city repeat the model on another surplus property

Possible Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: No named forecaster; depends on church and city decisions

If the Liberty Wells conversion works smoothly, the church and Salt Lake City could point to it when considering another underused religious property for affordable housing.

2

Project stays a one-off conversion

Uncertain Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: No named forecaster; baseline scenario

The Liberty Wells project could remain a single example. That would leave open whether the church sees affordable housing as a repeatable use for surplus property.

3

City eases rules for faith-owned land conversions

Unlikely Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: No named forecaster; depends on City Council action

Salt Lake City could change zoning or approval rules to make it easier to convert faith-owned land into affordable housing. The Liberty Wells project would be the local example.

Historical Context

One moment from history that rhymes with this story — and how it unfolded.

2015-2024

Field of Dreams eco-community (2015-2024)

Habitat for Humanity Greater Salt Lake Area bought a 2-acre former ballfield in Kearns and built 18 affordable homes for families earning 30% to 60% of area median income.

Then

The project was complete by July 2024, with 18 families housed.

Now

It showed how an underused sports site can become below-market housing in Salt Lake County.

Why this matters now

The Liberty Wells conversion uses a similar idea: take land no longer used for its original purpose and put homes on it.

Sources

(2)
The Salt Lake Tribune Habitat for Humanity Greater Salt Lake Area