Salt Lake City turns trendy with Olympic visitor influx

SALT LAKE CITY -- There are limos on State Street, lines for invite-only parties and rock star sightings at the local clubs. Is this really Salt Lake City?

With its white-bread reputation and arcane liquor laws, this town was supposed to be too dull to host an Olympic party. But the games have brought their own hipness factor to Utah, virtually drowning out the Mormon influence with an influx of 70,000 visitors a day.

Suddenly downtown Salt Lake City, usually quiet on a weekday afternoon, is bustling. Visitors eye each other, wondering if that guy in the USA hat is worth asking for an autograph. Even the cries of the scalpers hawking tickets add to the buzz.

"It's awesome!" said 23-year-old John Huber, who was cruising the streets of his hometown Monday in the hope of meeting Olympic athletes. "This place kind of seems old sometimes. It's real now, it's younger and fresher."

City leaders have been trying for months to convince the world that this place isn't as square as a Mormon missionary.

It was nearly a losing battle. After all, nearly half of the city's residents belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose members avoid booze, coffee and tobacco. That has influenced the city's complex alcohol laws, which put tight restrictions on where and when hard liquor can be drunk (before 1 a.m. and in a private club).

One of the biggest boosters has been Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson. In the months leading up the games, the non-Mormon mayor fronted a reggae band, played foosball with the Utah bikini team at a downtown bar and appeared in Rolling Stone magazine to show his city is, in the words of one city press packet, "Saltier Than You Might Think."

"I like seeing people have a good time," Anderson said Monday. "I think that's part of being a good host."

Utah isn't totally naive when it comes to hip visitors. Each January the Sundance Film Festival draws celebrities from both coasts, plus hundreds of black-clad movie buffs that circle around them.

But most of the festival's meet-and-greets and late-night parties are in Park City, an upscale ski resort that's already far hipper than Utah's capital.

This time, Salt Lake City is getting in on the fun, said Alex Berezhnoj, who works at the Globe, a downtown restaurant LeAnn Rimes visited after singing at the opening ceremonies Friday night.

"There are a lot of good bands, you can mingle and see the celebrities," he said as he shared a cigarette break with two waiters outside the restaurant. "It feels like a real city."

Other stars have also turned up in unlikely places. Members of the Foo Fighters, who were scheduled to perform at the medals plaza on Monday, made a surprise appearance at an outdoor show on Saturday night. Rock group Smashmouth and R&B singer R. Kelly were spotted lounging at the Last Lap, a ticket-only hot spot that has taken over a downtown club for the games.

Granted, the hip factor has left some locals grumbling about the long lines at their favorite restaurants and higher prices at bars. But many residents -- even Olympic critics like Christopher Smart, the managing editor of Salt Lake City's alternative newspaper, The Salt Lake City Weekly -- say the buzz is a boon for the city.

"This is about as exciting as this place has ever been or may ever be," Smart said, adding that more locals seem to be heading downtown to check out the scene. "It's been really good for this town and the people here to get a whiff of what it's like to be in a cosmopolitan city."

But in two weeks, all the visitors will pack up, leaving Salt Lakers to entertain themselves.

"What happens when everybody goes? Do we all just go into a deep depression?" asked Nancy Borgenicht, co-executive producer of the Salt Lake Acting Company. "I think people want this. They want this place to be vibrant and alive."

The mayor said he's doing his best to make sure the party continues after the games are over. His plan includes sponsoring free downtown concerts on weekends and pushing the City Council to keep clubs -- which now close at 2 a.m. -- open at least until 3.

As for those who don't want to join in the fun? Anderson says there are plenty who have complained about the changes.

"There are some people who are like that," he said. "They can stay home and watch television. But I think we at least need to provide opportunities for people to have a good time."