Salt Lake City is moving forward with several trailhead infrastructure projects aimed at improving access to the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, including significant upgrades at Popperton Park, Emigration Trailhead, and Bonneville Boulevard. These developments include new paved parking, restroom facilities, and welcome plazas to support hikers and cyclists accessing the foothills.
Popperton Park Upgrades
Construction is currently underway at Popperton Park, located at 360 North Popperton Park Way. The project includes the development of a new Popperton Park Trailhead on the north side of the road, adjacent to the Popperton Plots Community Garden and the Popperton Park Open Space. This trailhead will provide access to several trails, including Dry Creek Canyon, Popperton Park, the eastern Avenues neighborhood, and the University of Utah.
The new trailhead will feature 46 paved perpendicular parking spaces, including two ADA-compliant spaces, and a welcome plaza with an information kiosk. Planned amenities include a "Be W.I.L.D." welcome station equipped with dog waste bags, waste receptacles, and invasive weed cleaning brushes, as well as a precast concrete restroom facility with two toilets and a water fountain. The project also includes a bike maintenance station, four bike racks designed by the SLC Arts Council, and a shade sail structure.
While Popperton Park Way remains open to the public, construction has caused the closure of existing parking stalls in front of the community garden. Parking stalls located to the west in front of the playfield remain available. The city anticipates completion of the parking facilities in summer 2025, though a sewer-connected restroom permit remains pending.
Emigration Trailhead Improvements
The Emigration Trailhead, located at 2699 E Sunnyside Ave, is also slated for improvements with an estimated completion date of late summer 2025. This site serves as a major access point for the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, providing entry to areas around Mt. Wire, Red Butte, Wagner Peak, and the Bonneville Shoreline Trail.
Unlike the Popperton project, the Emigration Trailhead will feature graded gravel parking for 17 designated spaces. The site will include a welcome plaza with a trailhead information kiosk, a picnic table, and a "Be W.I.L.D." care station. The city noted that because the Emigration Trailhead has a high proportion of users who access the area by foot or bike, only minimal additional parking was scheduled for this phase.
Bonneville Boulevard Development
At the Bonneville Boulevard site, located at 651 Bonneville Blvd, the city is developing a trailhead at the existing "salt dome lot" above Memory Grove. This site will serve as a major access point for the Avenues neighborhood, the Utah State Capitol, and downtown Salt Lake City to the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, City Creek Canyon, and the Upper Avenues trails.
The project includes a parking lot that will offer 50 designated spaces, including three ADA spaces, from April to October, and 17 year-round spaces, including one ADA space. The site will feature a welcome plaza, a native plant garden, six bike racks designed by the SLC Arts Council, and a bike maintenance station. The project also includes an event space under the existing pavilion for summer use.
Due to the site's use for road salt storage by the Streets Division, the back half of the parking lot and the covered pavilion will be gated off during the winter months. During these winter months, vehicular parking will be limited to between 4 and 15 spaces.
Project Timeline and Bidding
The design documents for all three projects were submitted to the Engineering Division for publication to bidding contractors. According to city documents, contractors for these trailhead projects were scheduled to be selected in March to allow for construction timelines occurring between April and June 2024.
