Students anticipate arrival of Chipotle in Utah County

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An informal poll of students around campus affirmed what may seem obvious: BYU students love Mexican food. When presented with a list of retailers that will be making their Utah County debut in the upcoming University Place development, the overwhelming majority said they were most excited for Chipotle.

“Chipotle,” cheered a student and her friend when surveyed.

“Chipotle’s so good. I think they have good odds (of beating Cafe Rio),” said Rachel Piper, 22, a medical lab science major from Arizona.

“Yes, oh my gosh,” gasped someone in another group of students. “I’m obsessed with Chipotle,” another said. “How many days until it’s done?”

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Rendering of the park planned for the University Place development. (Woodbury Corporation)

Commercial real estate company Woodbury Corporation, which is managing the redesign of the space around Orem’s University Mall, announced last week some of the stores that would be open for business by spring 2015. These include Charming Charlie, Torrid, Chipotle, Potbelly, RC Willey, Visionworks and Starbucks.

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Rendering of a new building planned for the University Place development. (Woodbury Corporation)

Plans for the development of the 112-acre area around University Mall were released in October 2013. Orem City manager Jamie Davidson was quoted by the Daily Herald, saying the development will give Orem a “sense of place.”

“As a city we’ve always wanted to have a gathering place and a community-oriented area,” Davidson said. “We don’t just want an open sea of parking. Because it’s a high-tech area, we will be catering to high-tech users.”

In place of the “open sea of parking” that currently exists around University Mall, the Woodbury Corporation is constructing a two-acre civic plaza and park, office and retail spaces, housing units, a swim and tennis club, an outdoor music venue and a hotel. The project is expected to take up to 10 years to complete.

“The redesign is a matter of better use of space,” said Orem City spokesman Steven Downs. “The design will bring more business and shopping to Orem.”

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