Historic Landmark Commission recommends rezoning to formalize Ellerbeck Bed & Breakfast and cafe expansion despite housing and parking concerns

The Salt Lake City Historic Landmark Commission voted 4–2 to recommend the City Council approve a general plan amendment and a zoning map amendment for properties at 140 B Street and 272 East 3rd Avenue, which would change zoning from RMF35 (residential multifamily) to the MU2 mixed-use district. The recommendation followed a long public hearing that included a staff presentation recommending a negative recommendation and robust public comment on both sides.

Planning staff (Grant Aean) recommended against forwarding the rezoning and general‑plan changes, telling commissioners the proposal did not comply with several standards in the zoning ordinance and could result in the loss of an existing dwelling unit. Staff flagged eight considerations: consistency with city plans, potential housing loss and unit-replacement questions, enforceability and proportionality of the proposed community benefit, parking and traffic impacts, short-term rental risks, precedential concerns, and alignment with the Avenues neighborhood plan. On short-term rentals, staff said the 272 E. 3rd property had been used as an Airbnb after its 2024 purchase and that civil enforcement in July 2025 led to the owner modifying listings to 30-day minimums; staff noted rezoning to MU2 would permit short-term rentals unless restricted in a development agreement.

Applicants Tyler and Cara Alden, operators of the Ellerbeck Bed & Breakfast and Café 140B, argued rezoning would align zoning with long-standing commercial uses at the Ellerbeck mansion and carriage-house cafe, protect neighborhood retail, and enable reuse of an adjacent derelict cottage as a small retail/reading room tied to the cafe. "We operate this 30‑year bed and breakfast and the cafe is a beloved walkable third place," Tyler Alden told the commission. The applicants proposed community benefits including donated space and annual donations to local nonprofits and said they had received many emails of support from neighbors and patrons.

Neighbors and employees came to the podium on both sides. Supporters said the cafe is a walkable community hub and the rezoning would protect an existing business and job opportunities. Opponents argued the cottage at 272 E. 3rd is a rare, one‑bedroom housing unit in the Avenues and warned rezoning could set precedent for converting residences to commercial uses, increase parking demand and noise, and erode the neighborhood's historic residential fabric.

Commissioners split along familiar lines: several members emphasized the value of protecting existing housing and the long-term implications of changing zoning in a historic overlay district, while others stressed the benefits of neighborhood-serving retail, walkability, and the applicants' preservation efforts. After clarifying the correct code citations and reworking the motion language, the commission voted to recommend approval of both the zoning map amendment and the general plan amendment (each motion passed 4–2) with conditions tied to the applicant's proposed community benefits and direction that development agreements should clarify use limits, including possible restrictions on short-term rentals.

The commission's recommendation is advisory; the City Council will make the final decision after receiving the commission's findings and the planning commission's recommendation. The transcript records multiple requested follow-ups, including a clearer, enforceable community-benefit plan and parking/traffic analysis for angled parking proposals.