Alongside many interior renovations preserving the Salt Lake Temple’s pioneer craftsmanship, one exterior project is restoring its iconic look: the removal of scaffolding.
As scaffolding is removed in the next few months, the stone walls of downtown Salt Lake City’s house of the Lord are also being cleaned.
Scaffolding has been needed in the temple’s multiyear project to complete the extensive seismic upgrades, structural strengthening and interior renovation work.
The scaffolding will continue to be dismantled through mid-March 2026. An open house will commence a year later, from April 2027 through October 2027.
The full renovation project is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026, according to a Jan. 16 news release on ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
The release says this removal of scaffolding marks “a shift from the heavy construction on the exterior of the temple to a more detailed finish of the interior. For visitors at Temple Square, this is one of the clearest signs that the long-term construction work is nearing completion.”
New statue on Temple Square
The Old Testament’s last two verses prophesy that Elijah would return to “turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers” (Malachi 4:5-6). The scripture would be fulfilled on April 3, 1836, when Elijah restored the sealing keys to the Prophet Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery (see Doctrine and Covenants 110:13-16).
And now, just feet from the Salt Lake Temple stands a statue to commemorate the sealing power being brought back in this dispensation.
The new statue, Restoration of the Sealing Keys, is located northwest of the Salt Lake Tabernacle. It was sculpted by Utah artist Ben Hammond, who also created Temple Square’s Come, Follow Me and The Five Wise Virgins statues.
“Once they moved all the construction equipment out of the way from installing it and we took the plastic off of it, I got a little emotional there,” said Hammond about the Jan. 15 installation. “It was a good feeling.”
These are among 14 statues to be placed around Temple Square from 2025 to 2027. Created by local artists, the art pieces will highlight key moments in the life of Jesus Christ and Church history.
Recent news on Temple Square
Open house announced: After nearly seven and a half years of renovation, the Salt Lake Temple will hold an open house. Visitors are invited to tour the pioneer-era house of the Lord from April 2027 through October 2027.
President Russell M. Nelson announced the open house in a Feb. 14, 2025, social media post, adding, “We warmly invite our friends to come and learn about God’s plan for His children and rejoice in the love of Jesus Christ.”
First Presidency tours temple: Last month, on Dec. 12, 2025, the First Presidency toured parts of the Salt Lake Temple. Church President Dallin H. Oaks and his counselors — President Henry B. Eyring and President D. Todd Christofferson — have been closely involved in the renovation work of the historic temple.
Adjustments to Temple Square missionary service: On Jan. 9, the Church announced adjustments to how sister missionaries serve at Temple Square. Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke about the adjustment in a devotional with the 128 sister missionaries of the Utah Salt Lake City Temple Square Mission.
Such sisters, he announced, will continue serving on Temple Square but will now be assigned to a surrounding mission, sharing time between a teaching area and Temple Square. These adjustments are planned to enhance the guest experience and increase missionary opportunities in preparation for the Salt Lake Temple open house.
“This is the Lord’s work. You are a part of it,” said Elder Rasband in the devotional. “You are the pioneer sisters who will begin this now. Others will follow you for years now in this new model, but you are the first ones.”
