A group called "Research Granger Land" started to build in 1955

Research Granger Land: Building Subdivisions in a Growing Community

As the Salt Lake Valley expanded in the postwar years, farmland in Granger and surrounding areas began to give way to subdivisions and commercial growth. One company at the forefront of this transformation was Research Granger Land, organized in April 1955 with $300,000 in capital stock dedicated to construction and real estate development. The firm’s early leadership included A.P. Nielson (President), Brigham Scott (Vice President), and John P. Soltis (Secretary/Treasurer).

In May 1955, the company began its first project, working on two lots in the Granger Park Subdivision. Later that year, in October 1955, Research Granger Land made a major purchase—50 acres at 5600 South and 1000 East for $182,500. With B.D. Scott taking the lead, the land was planned as a residential subdivision, with Cal Zumbrennen of Thayne Realty Co. handling the transaction.

By 1958, the company had expanded its activities, including the sale of a lot at 27 F Street to A.P. Nielson and work in the Hillsdale Subdivision No. 6 (Amended and Extended). Some parcels were sold directly to A.P. Nielson Construction Co., keeping development within the circle of its founders. At the same time, additional lots in the Granger Park Subdivision were under construction.

In 1959, Research Granger Land began development of property in Section 33, continuing the steady conversion of open land into housing tracts. By 1960, it was again active in the Granger Park Subdivision, this time developing two additional lots in the second phase of the project.

Through these transactions, Research Granger Land played a quiet but pivotal role in shaping neighborhoods that would later be absorbed into West Valley City. Each subdivision represented another step in the community’s transition from agricultural roots toward the suburban landscape familiar today.