By Darrell Kirby | [email protected]

West Valley City is doing its part to provide a home for the Wasatch Front's burgeoning technology industry. 

Following groundbreaking in November, construction is currently underway for Soleil Technology Park, West Valley City's first "hub" that will target up-and-coming technology businesses, although it won't necessarily be limited to that sector. 

The development by The Wasatch Group is next to the existing Motorola Solutions facility, which is at 4625 W. Lake Park Blvd. 

In a video posted on West Valley City's Facebook page, Wasatch Group CEO, Dell Loy Hansen, calls Soleil Technology Park "a center for technology that is unique in all of Utah." 

One of the reasons for that is its expected environmental impact — it is designed to have none. The five buildings and 550,000 square feet of Soleil Technology Park will use solar and other renewable sources to provide nearly all of its energy needs. In addition, there will be about 200 charging stations for electric vehicles in its parking lots. "This is a zero-pollution campus," Hansen said. 

A more conventional selling point of the development is its location. “The reason for that is very simple: access to both the airport and downtown (Salt Lake City)," West Valley assistant city manager Nicole Cottle said in that same Facebook video. 

The location of this latest project in his company's extensive commercial and residential property portfolio was also mentioned by Hansen. “West Valley is a hidden gem in the valley, and the thing I’ve been good at is finding things before other people figure it out.” 

Hansen also touted the project's proximity to the University of Utah and the availability of an educated workforce. Soleil is also located in a Qualified Opportunity Zone, a federal designation to promote economic development and job creation by providing tax benefits to those who invest in economically distressed areas. 

Brandon Fugal, chairman of the Utah operations of real estate services firm Colliers International, is overseeing the leasing of office space at Soleil Technology Park. He says that while the primary targets are technology companies, its space is also open to financial services, health care, and other types of office-oriented businesses. “It really is competitively priced,” he said compared to similar developments in other growing business hubs such as Sandy and Lehi.

He says there has been a “significant amount” of early interest by companies exploring the possibility of locating at Soleil. 

The entire project is scheduled to be completed in mid 2021. 

“We look forward to providing a northern alternative to Silicon Slopes,” said Nicole Cottle, referring to the growing corridor of tech companies primarily from southern Salt Lake County to Provo.