The North Salt Lake City Council has approved plans for a mural to be painted on the side of the former Bamberger Hotel building at 10 South Main Street. As part of a citywide Mural Program implemented by the North Salt Lake Arts Committee, Community Development Director Sherrie Pace said that the mural and other similar art pieces coming to the city, will “add to the vibrancy of the City, encourage economic development in our Town Center, and hopefully bring a smile to the face of those who view the murals.” 

The mural will be located on the north side of the building that is across the street from Hatch Park. The building is owned by the Montanaro family. David Montanaro, who recently passed away, was a self-taught artist and a resident of North Salt for over 40 years. The mural will be done by Jean Montanaro, his daughter and herself a highly accomplished painter with extensive experience with mural painting. As a way of honoring Montanaro’s art, the mural will combine two of his pieces, projecting them onto the building’s wall and then blocking them in with a stencil. 

David Montanaro was born and raised in Providence Rhode Island. Originally he went to Brown University as a medical student, but while studying he discovered that his true passion was for art. His wife Sheila is also a talented artist, and together they raised nine children, and according to Jean, “molded their lives around art.” In the early 1980s David and Sheila moved their family to North Salt Lake and became intimately involved in bringing art to the community. The Montanaro family are a familiar presence at arts festivals and farmers markets around Utah where they sell stone jewelry and paintings. They were some of the first vendors at the Salt Lake City farmers markets and have attended regularly for 27 years. Eventually, at the Bamberger Hotel property they opened the Original Way Gallery which, through frequent shows, provided a place for local artists to display their work. “His jewelry was something that he more easily put out there,” Jean Montanaro said about her father. “But his paintings and his art have not had too much exposure… and the mural is the first big step in getting it out there… I believe, whether it’s bias or not, that he’s one of the great artists of our time.” 

The North Salt Lake Mural Program came about as a desire to beautify the city and drive tourism. In 2024, a member of the Parks, Trails, Arts and Recreation Advisory Committee approached the City Council with the idea to apply for a grant from the Davis County Tourism Department to use for the installation of murals throughout the city. With the success of similar projects in Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake and Midvale, the City Council accepted the proposal last February. 

The cost of the mural is estimated at $7,500 – $10,000. The funding has been allocated for the project from the budget of the Arts Committee. The money will go toward the building preparation, paint and supplies, scaffolding, and artist compensation. Such a number was reached after conversations with the Montanaro family and research into similar art projects in Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake, and Midvale. The Mural Program was adopted by the City Council last February and money was set aside in the Arts Committee budget at that time. According to Pace, the city will be applying for the Discover Davis Mural Grant program, which, if accepted, would be able to cover 50% of the total cost. Funding is not contingent on the Grant and if not awarded will still be able to be fully covered by the city. 

“It’s important to remind people and young people, that art is something that’s worth having in your life… or to just appreciate,” Jean Montanaro said. “It’s something that can create an identity for the community.”

Work has already begun to prepare the wall of the Bamberger Hotel for the mural and Montanaro hopes that the art piece will be completed by the end of September or beginning of October.