If you live in Glenwild or Jeremy Ranch and needed a library book in September, where did you go? The Kimball Junction branch hasn't been in the Sheldon Richins Building since mid-August. KPCW reported Aug. 15 as its last open day there. The new branch at the PEAK Center planned a mid-September soft opening. That got pushed back. So the answer has been a bookmobile parked in the Richins lot, where patrons can browse and pick up holds.
That bookmobile sums up Kimball Junction this fall. The county library, the DMV, county meetings and two well-known Salt Lake City ramen kitchens are all heading for new addresses on Landmark Drive and in Junction Commons. The moves are happening on schedule. The spaces they're moving into are still being finished. For someone who does errands and eats out on this side of the Basin, October is a month of announced openings with dates that are still settling.
The Richins Building Is Being Emptied, Then Replaced
PEAK stands for "public engagement at Kimball." According to KPCW, the building will hold every county service now offered at the Sheldon Richins Building, including the library. It's the former Skullcandy headquarters at 6301 N. Landmark Drive. The county bought that building rather than build a new one.
The Richins Building won't stay empty for long. KPCW says Altus Station, the mixed-use town center planned by Six Ridge Partners, is slated to replace the Richins Building and expand the transit center at Landmark Drive and Ute Boulevard. Six Ridge Partners was formerly Dakota Pacific Real Estate, and the project long known as Dakota Pacific is now called Altus Park City. The street names are changing too. In an Aug. 19 public hearing, the Summit County Council unanimously approved Ordinance 1018, which renames Tech Center Drive between Overland Drive and Landmark Drive as Nordic Drive.
So the library hasn't just changed addresses. The building it left is meant to make way for the next phase of Kimball Junction, and the county is handing over its old site as part of that.
Residents also eased the move. During the library's "Check Out the Move" promotion in August, patrons checked out more than a third of the collection, about 15,000 books, so staff didn't have to pack them.
Oct. 3 Is a Preview, Not a Full Opening
Summit County calls the Oct. 3 event "Taco-bout Kimball Junction." It runs 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 6301 N. Landmark Drive. Summit County, High Valley Transit, Six Ridge, the Utah Department of Transportation and other partners will show project designs and answer questions. On display:
- Designs for Altus Station and a planned pedestrian bridge over State Route 224
- A look inside the renovated PEAK Center
- Free taco and falafel food trucks sponsored by Six Ridge and Summit County
- Children's activities, Summit Bike Share activities and a Summit County Health Department vaccine clinic
- The library's Book Brigade at about 1 p.m., carrying selected books from the Richins Building to PEAK
The Book Brigade has a theme. Library Director Dan Compton told KPCW the human chain will pass the 24 books chosen over the years for "One Book One Community." The most recent is this year's pick, Shelley Read's "Go as a River."
County officials have been open about the building's status. "We're saying just a peek because it's not officially ready yet," Deputy County Manager Janna Young said on KPCW's "Local News Hour" Sept. 29. She listed the new library, the Department of Motor Vehicles office and the council meeting spaces as what visitors can see. On Sept. 8, Compton said the library side was being finished while work continued on the second floor, which tenants should move into "hopefully early next year." The auditorium was also still being finished. As of Sept. 30, we haven't found published regular library hours or a start date for DMV service at PEAK. The library said it would announce an updated opening date. If you need to renew a registration or pick up a hold, check with the county or library before you drive over.
The Lower Outlets Are Becoming a Dinner Destination
The same thing is happening in Kimball Junction's restaurant scene. The new restaurants are committed, but their opening dates are still estimates.
Tosh's Ramen is opening in Junction Commons at 6699 N. Landmark Drive, in Suite H145. Owners Maxwell and Annie Peck bought the business from Toshio Sekikawa. He made his ramen as a special while working as a sushi chef in Park City and helping open Hapa Grill, then opened his own Salt Lake City shop in 2014. Tosh's serves tonkotsu-style ramen. Annie Peck once worked at Thai So Good in Park City. The couple told The Park Record they kept getting phone calls asking for a Park City location. Maxwell Peck explained why they chose this spot: "seeing that they're allowing food to go into the lower outlets, as we used to call it, I think it's the most amazing place to go." As of Sept. 18, final inspections were still pending and no opening day was set. The Junction Commons directory still lists Tosh's as "Coming Fall 2026!" The owners have described planned hours of roughly 10 or 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Koyoté is taking over the former Hana Ramen Bar space in Kimball Junction. Chefs Hiro Tagai and Felipe Oliveira opened the original Salt Lake City restaurant in late 2023. It was recently Michelin Recommended in Utah's first appearance in the Southwest Michelin Guide. Tagai studied ramen in Japan and builds the menu around a clear, Tokyo-style broth. Other dishes include chashu-don, shioyaki saba, gyoza and a whipped tofu appetizer served with scallion pancakes. Diners order through QR codes on the tables. Tagai told The Park Record that Park City's costs had made them hesitant, because "to make it work we'd have to raise prices." The former Hana space came open in late spring at the right price and needed less renovation. The target is October, with no fixed day, because the date depends on buildout.
That gives Kimball Junction two ramen styles a short drive apart, the rich pork broth at Tosh's and the clear Tokyo-style stock at Koyoté. Both are expected to open this fall.
The Retail Opening Dates Are Firmer
Shopping is the one part of the move with fixed dates.
| Date | What | Where | Status as of Sept. 30 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Oct. 2 | Pandora grand opening | Junction Commons, Suite G102, next to Coach Outlet | Scheduled |
| Sat., Oct. 3 | PEAK Center preview and Book Brigade | 6301 N. Landmark Dr. | Scheduled; building "not officially ready" |
| October | Koyoté | Former Hana Ramen Bar space | Targeted; no fixed day |
| Oct. 22 | Nordstrom Rack grand-opening celebration | Junction Commons | Scheduled |
| Fall 2026 | Tosh's Ramen | Junction Commons, Suite H145 | Listed "Coming Soon" |
| Winter | Treehouse indoor play space and cafe | Former Best Buy building | Projected |
Pandora's date moved up. A March Junction Commons announcement projected a November opening. Some existing stores have shifted around the center too. Columbia Factory Store, for example, is now listed at a new location in Suite C100. Treehouse is planned as a roughly 7,500-square-foot indoor play space with a cafe aimed at parents. It's projected for winter, so it won't open this fall.
What's Already Open
While the new buildings get finished, a few nearby places are back to normal.
Run-A-Muk, Basin Recreation's 43-acre off-leash open space near Kimball Junction, reopened after a resurfacing project that started Sept. 2. It's back on regular hours, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Volunteer cleanup days are set for Oct. 8, 16 and 30. At the Swaner Preserve & EcoCenter, the "Ephemeral" exhibit opened Sept. 12. It celebrates Utah native plants, with the Utah Native Plant Society as a partner. Swaner also started a free native-seed library. Until the PEAK branch sets regular hours, the bookmobile in the Richins lot is still where you can pick up holds.
If you head into town, Park City's 14th annual Dine About runs through October, with food-and-drink specials and new menu items. Willow Creek Park Pond closed for the season Sept. 28 for bank work. The rest of the park and the dog park are still open. The Bonanza Trail Loop and Tall T in Bonanza Flat close Oct. 1 to give wildlife a winter rest.
The Oct. 3 preview is the best chance to see the PEAK Center, Altus Station and SR-224 plans together in one place, with the people behind them there to answer questions.
If you want to talk through how the Altus Station and PEAK Center plans could affect your corner of Snyderville Basin, the Ski Property Resort Group team has followed Kimball Junction's growth since 1994. We'd be glad to share what we're watching. Schedule a Consultation.
