Roughly 60 acres west of the 24th Street Viaduct in Ogden are about to undergo a huge conversion to become the new “Ogden Business Exchange.” This isn’t just any industrial parkway. It’s a crossroads between the techie “corporate culture,” the recreation culture of Ogden, and historic preservation thrown in for more than good measure. Character and attitude converge in this project.

The property’s history dates back to the early 1900s when it was the Union Stock Yards, center point for unloading cattle.

Many of the major site pieces will be repurposed, such as the feed troughs, the loading chutes, sections of the original stamped concrete, barn wood and hardware. What can’t be repurposed will be sold at auction in the next few months. Site prep is underway now and vertical construction will start in early spring.

Shalae Larsen, of Io Landscape Architecture, describes the process her firm is using when designing the site and putting together the Historic Site Adaptive Re-use Plan: “Our approach to the site design was to orient the proposed new buildings toward the river, creating an extension of the river parkway system (called the Trackline Promenade) that will reuse historic concrete loading chutes and paving as part of a pedestrian/bike path that encircles the entire site. Parking is tucked away on the interior of the site and is accessed by a service road. The purpose of the design is to capitalize on the river as an amenity, and to create an environment where employees of the potential new companies will be encouraged to bike to work.”

It’s a fitting plan since Ogden is all about cycling these days. Touted as the North American bike mecca, Ogden is primed for an industrial park such as this one. Several tenants are already locked in, including one major bike component manufacturer and a few others that can’t be named at this stage in the game. The Trackline Promenade is so crucial to the concept of the industrial park that it’s referred to more often by the name “trackline” than it is by its official name “Ogden Business Exchange.”

The master plan for the site identifies joint efforts to add another section of trail extending the Ogden River Parkway a few additional miles. It is incredibly satisfying to watch as the community recognizes its history and makes a conscious effort to honor that history while cleaning up the areas and using them for new, forward- thinking developments.

The Trackline project is just one of four primary commercial development areas Ogden City is focusing on, as well as two major residential development zones, all slated to come on within the next five years. To put it mildly, Ogden is booming.

People interested in available tenant space in the Trackline complex, or wanting additional information about other development projects and opportunities, should contact Tom Christopulos, Ogden City Director of Community and Economic Development at tomchristopulos@ogdencity.com.

Those interested in updates related to the Trackline project, including information on auction dates and the proposed oral history presentation, should follow the story at iolandarch.com.