Church Update

(Be sure and see the video at the end of the article to enjoy a lovely tour of the new Visitors’ Center.)

“For years, every generation has asked, how do we share the story of who we are as a people? How do we share the story of temples? And every generation has tried a different method,” said Emily Utt, a curator of historic sites for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

A sneak peek into the new 39,800 square foot Visitors’ Center at Temple Square reveals a refreshing answer to how to tell our story. For years visitors to Temple Square have asked two questions. “Do Latter-day Saints believe in Jesus Christ and what goes on inside your temples?

This new visitors’ center answers both questions masterfully, but the second question in a way that is utterly new.


“You may think you have been to a visitors’ center before, but this is not that. This is an experience like you have never had before,” said Emily Bell Freeman, Young Women’s General President.”

Approaching Temple Square from South Temple, it is easy to see that the new Visitors’ Center consists of two wings separated by a garden that allows a clear view of the temple beyond them. Beneath that garden and connecting the two wings is a sweeping lower level where the South Visitors’ Center stood before it was demolished.


It is in that underground area that visitors find the surprise. Here are exhibits, scale models of temples from around the world, but what’s unique is an exact replica of the rooms that are actually inside a temple, including a recommend desk, a baptistry, an instruction room, a celestial room and a sealing room.

This means that this visitors’ center with these replica rooms will become a perpetual temple open house.

When the Salt Lake Temple has its open house from April to October in 2027, with visitors expected in the range of 3 to 5 million and a daily attendance of 20,000 to 29,000, that is not the end of visitors to Temple Square seeing what a temple looks like. While these replica rooms, are not the Salt Lake Temple, they look like the inspiring rooms of other temples. 

Elder Matthew S. Holland said, “Because Latter-day Saints consider their temples a sacred space, people naturally wonder what goes on inside of them.” They will always be able to not only find out, but see for themselves, on Temple Square.

The Salt Lake Temple open house in 2027 will mark the first time in history the temple has been open to the public.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, acting president of the church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles emphasized, “I think it is wonderful that we have now this openness of showing what is happening so no one can feel that we’re keeping anything hidden, because there’s nothing to hide.”


He said, “This morning, I was able to dedicate this visitors’ center and consecrate it to the purpose of proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ to all those who come…which is joyful.

Eager to Come to Temple Square

As President Uchtdorf stood next to the Christus statue skirted by windows that opened to an imposing view of the temple, he said, “The openness is also reflected here with all these windows and the glass, the wood, and the temple behind us, and the statue of Jesus Christ, right here.

“It reminds me when we all see this beautiful material, almost the highest level of quality you can imagine, how did this all come about? It came about because of a small group of people, many years ago, who found a way to worship God in a similar way as it was done when Jesus Christ walked the earth. That is what we call the Restoration”

“These people came together in the Eastern part of the United States, and unfortunately, they weren’t very welcomed there, so they looked for a place far away from circumstances of persecution.”

 “Four days after they arrived here, they decided, this is the spot to build a House of the Lord. These people came in with hand carts. They came in oxen-drawn wagons. They lived in log houses…with no firm floor, dirt floors. These people, settled here and within a few years, still living in those houses, built this temple. Since they were not in business of building this temple for 40 years, they were…interrupted by other things–an army coming in trying to straighten them out. In the meantime, they also built the tabernacle which is right next to us.


“So you see, those people, living here in those simple circumstances, built this majestic building. Why? Because of their conviction and faith in Jesus Christ.”

President Uchtdorf said, that conviction moved them then and “that is what moves us now.”

He also said of the remarkable feat of shoring up and renovating the Salt Lake Temple and building this new visitor’s center, “It’s a beautiful time, when we see how everything falls in place.” 

A Blending of the Old and the New

Amy Christensen, of Jacobsen Construction that has been the contractor on the temple and visitors’ center, said that in their 104-year history as a company, this has been an unprecedented project for them to work on the temple project.


“There have been over a thousand people at any given time working a day on this project, six days a week, with a 20-hour staggered work schedule going on as different people come and go. It’s a lot of dedicated time to this project, and there are 10 work packages here, so it’s 10 construction projects in one.”

While upgrading the temple and building the visitors’ center with its exact replica of rooms in a temple, the most advanced pioneering technology was used, but there was always a nod to the pioneer past.

Until, the seismic upgrade of the temple, it has been standing on the adobe foundation, laid by the pioneers, though some portions had been repaired. Now, like the spiritual heritage of the Latter-day Saints, the temple is standing on many layers of foundational strength.

“It’s amazing to see what original innovations were done on this structure at time,” said Christensen. “It was state of the art, absolutely. As we stand on the shoulders of those original construction builders, we feel like we’re partners through the generations with them and pioneering a new generation of people who want to come, participate, and be inside the temple, and keep it safe for many generations to come.”


She noted that many of the workers on the temple and visitors’ center construction site had ancestors who had worked on the original Salt Lake Temple, and some of them are also working in the same skill set.

“There’s an absolute connection to the pioneers. A lot of old photographs and history have been studied to review back as much as possible the look and feel of the temple interior and to repurpose and reuse many things that were in the temple before. Even art glass has been restored, though some of it has been moved so it can be seen by more people.”

Only Dreamed of

Emily Utt noted that in 1852 while the temple was only partially constructed, the pioneers built a wall around the square to define the sacred center. “I love that this wall is still here to show you are now entering sacred space.”


Yet, what the new visitors’ center does with its remarkable technology, is something that could have only been dreamed of in earlier years. Utt said, in the 19th century when people came to Temple Square and wanted to learn about what the Latter-day Saints believed, they’d have to ask a gardener. Then in 1902, a little bureau of information was opened on one corner of the square. Then in the 1960’s they built the North Visitors’ Center and put a Christus in it followed by the building of a South Visitors’ Centeri n the 70’s.

Yet, Utt said, “Since we are always working on being open and transparent, we have technology now that we could only have dreamed of in the 60’s. We can tell our story better than ever before.

What You’ll Find in the Visitors’ Center

In the east wing of the Visitor’s Center is an exact scale model, made to the minute detail to look like the inside of the renovated Salt Lake temple. One wall of the temple moves down to reveal this interior. Then the back of the temple also moves so the two new wings of the temple, much of it underground. can be seen. This is a 100,000 square feet addition.

These wings have glass roofs, so someone entering this section of the temple can look up and see the rising temple above them. In addition, this area also includes special rooms where friends and family of those getting sealed, who cannot go in, have a place to sit and enjoy the spirit of the temple.


In total, the new temple will have 23 sealing rooms, a large number that President Russell M. Nelson had insisted on for a temple at the center of Christendom. 

Moving to the lower level is a display of models of 11 temples from around the world with electronic signs in English, Spanish and Mandarin. They lead to a large, interactive, lighted globe, showing temples dotting the earth. Touch a glowing dot on the globe where a temple is located, and a photo of a temple emerges.


The centerpiece of the hall is the “Come Unto Me” statue of Christ, made of marble from the same quarry where the famous statue of David was drawn. The statue by artist Christian Holt, captures both the divinity of Christ and his reach out for every person.


The hall then leads to a media wall of photos, videos and audio, that illustrate caring for others. The church, regarding all people as children of God, seeks to reach out with a humanitarian hand to all people.


Beyond the visitors’ center guests can see landscaped gardens with sculptors which give a glimpse into sacred moments in the ministry of Christ and sacred moments like the reception of the priesthood powers and keys.

A Time of Excitement

For those who have waited what seems like a very long time to be able to be on Temple Square and see the visitors’ center and be closer to the temple, this is an exciting time. This project is a monument to cutting edge effort, cooperation and coming together to do something truly magnificent.

With the replicas of the rooms of a temple in the visitor’s center, this is a first experience in opening up the rooms of a temple more broadly while maintaining the sacred space of the temple itself.

What You Need to Know

The visitors’ center will be open May 18, with anyone able to come through the doors to visit. However, to see the replica rooms requires a reservation which can be made at  TempleSquare.org. The experience takes about 30 minutes. As of this writing, the first two weeks were already booked.

How and When to Visit the Temple Square Visitors’ Center

• Hours: Beginning May 18, 2026, the Temple Square Visitors’ Center will be open every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Tickets: Admission to the center is free. While no ticket is required for entry, a reservation is required for the 30-minute “Inside a Temple” tour. Reservations can be made through the Temple Square app (Apple, Android) or at TempleSquare.org.
• Parking: Free parking is available at the Conference Center with validation; City Creek parking is also available south of Temple Square (first two hours free).
• Public transit: The Temple Square TRAX station provides direct access.
• Accessibility: The visitors’ center is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and fully accessible to all visitors.