Can downtown Provo become an exciting 24-hour hub with a vibrant nightlife, dining and retail destinations and provide affordable housing for young single professionals and retireesfi

The answer is a definite yes, according to Steven Spickard, senior vice president of Economics Research Associates.

But it will require more participation from property owners and businesses with a stake in downtown Provo as well as clearer city policies on real estate development.

Speaking to an audience of about 20 on Tuesday, Spickard outlined a 100-page city-sponsored report, which examined the potential for more office, retail, restaurant and residential development in downtown Provo over the next 20 years.

"As the home of Brigham Young University, Provo has emotional and cultural significance for many LDS members and BYU alumni, and is able to retain and attract residents on that basis," the ERA study found.

"This has an important implication for the housing market, as potential buyers of condominiums in Provo include out-of-state residents longing to return to Provo for cultural and religious reasons, or eager to purchase an investment property to be occupied by their children while attending BYU," the study said.

These potential buyers are likely to fuel more condominium and upscale multi-family rental property development in downtown Provo, Spickard said.

David Runnells of Prudential Real Estate in Orem agreed. He said most of the buyers of the 24 condominium and penthouse units at the new Wells Fargo building in downtown Provo were empty nesters averaging 48 to 68 years of age, young, single professionals and young couples without children.

It took almost a year to sell all the units, more than half of which were sold in the last six months at prices ranging between $220,000 and $410,000 for the condominiums, and $750,000 for the penthouse units, he said.

"But all of them are sold, and we got them at the prices advertised. Whenever you have projects like the Wells Fargo building that's first in its market, there's nothing for the appraiser or consumer to compare it to," said Runnells, a mixed-use sales consultant for Prudential.

On the office market potential in downtown Provo -- which currently accounts for more than 40 percent of Utah County's office space -- Spickard estimates it could absorb about 550,000 square feet to 1.4 million square feet of new development in the next decade.

In addition to the county's courts and the new justice court complex, there is potential to attract a federal court complex as well, the study said.

City officials also could look at attracting more financial institutions and global companies to locate their corporate headquarters in downtown Provo by helping them acquire and assemble land sites, Spickard said.

The number of business inquiries for downtown Provo grew over the past two years, tripling to between 60 and 100 annually, from just 20 a year, said Susan Bradford, executive director of the Downtown Business Alliance. The nonprofit group represents 270 businesses and 100 property owners in downtown Provo.

Although Provo's share of taxable sales dropped from 30 percent to 22 percent because of recent big-box retail development along Interstate 15 and lifestyle center projects in northern Utah County, Spickard says Provo can capitalize on its unique historic character to attract more specialty retailers such as boutiques and specialty food stores.

"Be anti-mall," Spickard said. "Lifestyle centers are trying to recreate the downtown pedestrian environment, but Provo already has it. Pick a couple of streets like University Avenue and Center Street and focus restaurant and retail around those key streets."

But first, Provo city must get feedback from existing businesses and residents in downtown Provo to develop a plan that represents the mix of retail, office and housing they want, Spickard said.

Then hire a recruiter to hustle the businesses they have identified, he said. "You don't necessarily have to target national retail chains. Talk to local regional restaurateurs and retailers and convince them to come to downtown Provo," he advised.

The restaurant market has more potential than that of retail, Spickard said. Taxable retail sales show restaurant spending in Provo has grown in the past decade. With more multifamily housing built and additional employees occupying new downtown office space, the ERA estimates the area could capture between 40,000 square feet and 90,000 square feet of new restaurant space over the next 20 years.

But to encourage more investment in downtown Provo, city officials have to find ways to expedite the public process and help overcome the developers' uncertainty over how their investment will pan out, said Paul Glauser, director of the Provo City Redevelopment Agency.

"If Provo is successful in attracting a conference center, consider legislation to encourage or even force the next few hotel developments to locate downtown," Spickard said.

Ultimately, a vibrant downtown is possible, Glauser maintains.

"Just look at Nu Skin's corporate headquarters and the new Wells Fargo building," Glauser said. "Several years ago, there was nothing like that in downtown Provo."

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page A1.