Photo Credit
Kirk Huffaker Consulting
County
Sevier
Year Built
1936–1937
Architect
Carson Fordham Wells Jr.
National Register?
Yes, listed April 9, 1986, as part of the Public Works Buildings Thematic Resource
Status
Lost
Status Explanation
The Salina Municipal Building and Library was demolished in the fall of 2025. Preservation Utah listed the building on the 2025 Most Endangered list after learning the city planned to raze it following completion of a new library. Salina City accepted sealed demolition bids. The Salina Sun reported the demolition on November 18, 2025. The building was replaced with a parking lot. Its loss eliminated one of only 19 surviving WPA-era city halls in Utah and one of five remaining WPA structures in Sevier County.
About the Threat
After the city completed construction of a new library, Salina City moved forward with plans to demolish the historic WPA-era building and replace it with a parking lot. No formal preservation agreement, deed restriction, or adaptive reuse process was pursued before the demolition decision was made. The building had no local landmark designation that would have triggered additional review.
Access
The Salina Municipal Building and Library was publicly accessible as a functioning city hall and library until the city completed construction of a new library facility in 2025, at which point the building was vacated and subsequently demolished.
History
The Salina Municipal Building and Library was one of 232 structures built in Utah during the 1930s and early 1940s by the Works Progress Administration. By 2025, only 133 of these buildings were still eligible for the National Register. Only 22 of them were originally city or town halls, and Salina's was one of just 19 still standing. In Sevier County, nine WPA buildings were built, and this was one of five that lasted into the 21st century.
Constructed between 1936 and 1937 for approximately $18,400, the building replaced Salina's original city hall, which had stood since 1897. The local newspaper at the time noted that the older structure "lacks modernized equipment and style," while the new facility promised to be "modern in every particular." The Prairie School and Art Deco in character called for a one-and-a-half-story brick building with library rooms, council chambers, and city offices on the upper level. The basement included a public meeting space and a small, discreetly located city jail. The contractor won the bid at $18,407.34, with nearly half of the funding provided by the WPA in cash, materials, and labor.
Besides being a library and town hall, the building was also the administrative headquarters for WPA Zone Five, which managed federal relief programs in six counties in south-central Utah. At the time, people described its large basement as having "ample space" for running New Deal projects in the area.
To understand the loss of the building, it's important to look at the bigger picture. Utah was one of the states hit hardest by the Great Depression. In 1933, the state's unemployment rate reached 36 percent, the fourth highest in the country, and from 1932 to 1940, the average was 25 percent. Federal relief programs were both needed and common. During the 1930s, Utah ranked ninth in per capita federal spending, and almost every government building from that time, courthouses, city halls, fire stations, armories, and schools, was funded by programs like the CWA, FERA, NYA, WPA, or PWA. The Salina Municipal Building was a rare, well-preserved example of this history.
What can be done? What was learned?
The loss of the Salina Municipal Building and Library shows a common problem in historic preservation: being listed on the National Register does not protect a building from demolition, especially when a public owner controls the property. Federal listing is only honorary. Without a local landmark law, a preservation easement, or a deed restriction that requires review before demolition, a listed building can be torn down without any formal preservation process.
This case also shows the risk that WPA-era civic buildings face in small towns. These buildings were built for specific uses, such as city halls, libraries, or post offices. When those services move to new buildings, the old ones are left without a clear purpose or any support from the city government. Planning for new uses before building a replacement is the best way to prevent this. If the city had considered options such as community space, offices, or a museum while the new library was still being designed, the building might have been saved.
There are two practical lessons from Salina for communities and preservation groups. First, local landmark status adds a step in the process that federal listing does not. Second, it is easiest to save a building before a new one is finished. Once the old building is empty, it is much harder to stop demolition.
What is the timeline?
The Salina Municipal Building and Library stood on Main Street for almost 90 years. The original city hall, built in 1897, was torn down to make way for a new building constructed between 1936 and 1937. M.W. Breinholt of Venice, Utah, was awarded the contract, with nearly half the funding coming from the Works Progress Administration in the form of cash, materials, and labor. The building served as the city library, city hall, and the administrative headquarters for WPA Zone Five, which managed federal relief programs in six counties in south-central Utah. On April 9, 1986, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Public Works Buildings Thematic Resource.
After the new library was finished in 2025, Salina City decided to tear down the old building and put a parking lot in its place. Preservation Utah added the building to its 2025 Most Endangered Historic Places list when the demolition plans became public. The city started accepting sealed bids for demolition on August 7, 2025, and reviewed them at the City Council meeting on September 10. The building was demolished in the fall of 2025. The Salina Sun reported on the loss in a November 18, 2025 article called "Last Look at a Landmark."
What has been the public discussion?
Preservation Utah included the building on its 2025 Most Endangered list, which brought attention to its importance and led to social media coverage. Despite this, the city went ahead with demolition. The Salina Sun reported the loss in an article published in November 2025. No public preservation efforts changed the city's decision.
Links to more information and articles.
National Register nomination: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/72000095
Salina Sun, November 18, 2025 — "Last Look at a Landmark": https://salinasun.online/last-look-at-a-landmark/
Utah Public Notice, August 7, 2025 — demolition bid notice: https://www.utah.gov/pmn/sitemap/notice/1014303.html
Kirk Huffaker Instagram (2025 Most Endangered listing): https://www.instagram.com/p/DIRNxTmJ7ww/
Living New Deal site record: https://livingnewdeal.org/sites/city-hall-salina-ut/