This story appears in the April 2026 issue of Utah Business. Subscribe.
Welcome to the new downtown. In a world where Amazon delivers same-day packages to our doors, and Costco and Sam’s Club stock the universe in stacks of pallets, the most vibrant downtown hubs in Utah have reinvented themselves. Small-business owners aren’t just stocking shelves with merchandise — they are collaborating to design experiences and create community gathering spaces.
In this five-part series, we’ll explore how Ogden, Salt Lake City, Provo, St. George and Logan create wander and wonder in downtown neighborhood hubs. Let’s visit Logan.
Main Street, Logan
The Cache Valley Mall closed on April 1, 2024, and the wrecking ball came later that month. It was a classic business case study. Online retail boomed and anchor tenants fled, leaving the mall financially unsustainable.
What isn’t so classic about this case study is that eight small businesses moved from the mall to downtown Logan. One of them, Bliss Dresses, renovated a historic building just off Carol and Jim Laub Plaza, a privately funded gathering place opened in September 2023 just across the street from Logan Tabernacle.
“The plaza is an asset for businesses because it’s an activated space where people can gather,” says Gary Saxton, executive director of the Logan Downtown Alliance. “It puts businesses in an area where there’s increased foot traffic. More than that, the businesses we see moving into the plaza enjoy it because it’s a beautiful location. It creates an environment that is very clean and somewhat swanky.”
Laub Plaza has an ice skating rink in winter, a splash pad in summer and an outdoor stage for concerts. Two adjacent buildings — the Plaza 45 complex — were renovated, and today, visitors need not leave the block to grab coffee at Grounds for Coffee, a crepe at The Crepery, sweets at Bluebird Candy Company or flowers at Sego Floral. A variety of salons and spas, and professional offices above retail shops, help create lunchtime foot traffic.
The plaza is a block away from Logan’s theater district, classically restored, century-old venues that generate evening foot traffic for traveling Broadway musicals, ballet performances and opera.
When the plaza opened in 2023, the mayor who led the effort, Holly Daines, said that in 2020, “downtown was struggling” with “a lot of vacancies and even broken windows.” She added, “What brings people downtown? Things like entertainment, dining experiences and a second location to kind of hang out. We really wanted to create that with the plaza.”
Yet even as downtown revitalization has made progress, the former site of the Cache Valley Mall, known as the 1400 North Corridor, is once again strengthening its gravitational pull. A Nebraska developer is partnering with the Logan Redevelopment Agency to build shopping centers and apartments.
Big-box stores dominate the corridor. Target, Walmart, Sam’s Club, Kohl’s, Staples, Best Buy, Lowe’s and Home Depot line North Main Street and 1400 North. National food chains like Chick-fil-A, Chili’s, Taco Bell, Buffalo Wild Wings and Texas Roadhouse seem drawn to Logan’s growth and the area’s proximity to the nearly 30,000 students at Utah State University.
While the property tax these national operators generate goes a long way toward funding Logan city services, the city’s 2045 General Plan also prioritizes downtown revitalization.
First, it calls for experiential retail, building on anchors like its hands-on children’s museum, cooking stores and art workshops.
“Experiential retail devotes more floor space to the immersive experience that only a brick-and-mortar store can provide,” the plan says. “It emphasizes memorable service and interaction over transactions. Different from online shopping, experiential retail draws customers seeking more than just buying necessities. … To expand experiential retail in Logan, the city needs to support mixed-use spaces that accommodate experiential uses, such as food halls and maker spaces in the downtown area.”
Woodsy Art Café is a great example. It opened in April 2025, a block from the new plaza, and it has become a space for building community. It is a cafe that serves coffee from locally popular Caffe Ibis and treats from Le Croissant, it is an art supply store with maker spaces and it is an event space for musicians and poetry readings. Recent events included a Pixel Animation Workshop and a Goth Punk Music Night.
Logan already has several important activation events that draw visitors downtown. The Cache Valley Gardeners’ Market, held weekly all summer, is true to Logan’s identity as an agricultural center. In June, there is the Logan Summerfest Arts Faire, and around July 4, there is the Cache Valley Cruise-In Car Festival. In the fall, the Latino Festival features food from Central and South America and live music and the hugely popular Center Street Giant Pumpkin Festival draws more than 20,000 visitors.
While Logan continues to see growth and progress, the 2045 General Plan is clear about maintaining its sense of identity, preserving the city’s unique roots and history: “Logan’s combination of its built environment, natural surroundings, and local culture make it distinctive from other communities in Utah. Its historic Downtown and buildings, the Logan River, and the presence of USU’s student body are all elements unique to Logan. This sense of place was widely cited by residents as a major asset that should be protected as the City grows.”