Deseret Peak Utah Temple

Utah has 30 temples announced, under construction, under renovation, or in operation. In addition to the Deseret Peak Utah Temple in Tooele, temples have been announced, are under construction, or are waiting for dedication in Ephraim, Heber Valley, Layton, Lehi, Lindon, Provo (reconstruction), Smithfield, Syracuse, Taylorsville, and West Jordan.

On 7 April 2019, during the Sunday afternoon session of the 189th Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Russell M. Nelson announced that a temple will be built in Tooele Valley, Utah.

On 19 January 2021, the First Presidency renamed this future house of worship from the Tooele Valley Utah Temple to the Deseret Peak Utah Temple. After considering current circumstances and opportunities, an alternate site for the temple was also selected. The temple is constructed west of the intersection of 2400 North 400 West in Tooele.

There are eleven stakes organized in the valley with stake centers located in the communities of Tooele, Stansbury Park, Grantsville, and Erda. Church membership has grown steadily in the county with members driving over 30 miles to participate in temple worship at the Salt Lake Temple.

An exterior rendering of the three-story, 70,000 square foot temple was released on 7 April 2020. Brent Roberts, managing director of the Church’s Special Projects Department, commented, "These beautiful renderings depict the care and attention to detail that will go into the construction of this House of the Lord. The temple is our holiest place of worship. We believe this will be a place where Latter-day Saints in the Tooele Valley and beyond can go to obtain peace and divine direction in their lives."

Speaking about the design of the temple, Bill Williams, Director of Temple Design for the Church said that the design of this temple features a cast stone exterior with copper shingles done in a pioneer-style. In planning the Deseret Peak Utah Temple, Williams and other architects drew details from nearby historic tabernacles. Additionally, several flowers native to the Tooele Valley—including cliffrose and silvery lupine—are featured throughout the temple in various rooms as well as on art glass and the building’s exterior. The temple will have four ordinance rooms (stationary) and four sealing rooms. Plans also call for the construction of an adjacent 20,000-square-foot meetinghouse.

The Deseret Peak Utah Temple will be the twenty-first temple built in Utah and the first temple built in Tooele County. Construction is estimated to be completed in mid-2024.

A First Look Inside the Deseret Peak Utah Temple

Celestial room in the Tooele Valley Utah Temple.
Ordinance room in the Tooele Valley Utah Temple.
Baptistry in the Tooele Valley Utah Temple.
Lobby in the Tooele Valley Utah Temple.
Sealing room in the Tooele Valley Utah Temple.

Groundbreaking Ceremony Is Held for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple

Elder Brook P. Hales of the Seventy turns over dirt with grandson Clark Hales, 4, during the Deseret Peak Utah Temple groundbreaking in Tooele, Utah, on Saturday, May 15, 2021. Photo Credit: Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

On Saturday morning, 15 May 2021, ground was broken in Tooele, Utah, for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The sacred edifice will be located about 30 minutes southwest of Salt Lake City. The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by a couple of hundred Latter-day Saint leaders and invited guests at the temple site.

Elder Brook P. Hales of the Quorum of the Seventy presided at the groundbreaking ceremony and offered the dedicatory prayer. In his dedicatory prayer, he said, "Help us that through the Atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ, we might be prepared and worthy to enter Thy sacred house to receive the blessings of exaltation available for ourselves and for our ancestors . . . Please bless all that will live in this temple district that they will feel the godly power of this sacred edifice."

Tooele resident, Dianne Rose, commented, "I have prayed that we would be able to have a temple in this valley, and I am so grateful to be able to be here as we break ground for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple." Merna J. Dalton, a local Latter-day Saint, expressed, "Remember the saying that . . . temples will dot the earth someday? It’s someday. We love temples, and we love that Heavenly Father puts temples so that it will remind us that families can be together forever." And, Tooele resident, Kim A. Halladay, shared, "God the Father loves us, He knows us, He's concerned about us, and [He] wants us to be in this holy edifice."

Elder Hales further commented, "I'm so grateful that we are here today to start the construction symbolically of this great temple. We're drawn to the temple, particularly in these times of great difficulty and calamity and chaos. The temple is truly a house of peace, where we can go and feel comfort and peace."