Downtown S.L. happy that store is staying put

Downtown businesses and shoppers breathed a collective sigh of relief Friday after Nordstrom — perhaps downtown's most important anchor retailer — announced it was staying put.

The decision created general euphoria for smaller downtown retailers who rely on Nordstrom to draw customers that spill over into other stores.

"We were just afraid that they would leave and we would be left in the lurch," said Doug Player, manager of Cabin Fever, just next to Nordstrom in Crossroads Plaza. "It was really great to finally find out what was going on. It's kind of nice to know what your future is going to be."

Others said without Nordstrom, they would have little or no incentive to come downtown at all.

Not everyone was dancing in the streets, however. Some shoppers, wary of the fashion retailer's high prices, barely batted an eye.

"I'm not a Nordstrom shopper so I really don't care," said Kerri Bauer of West Valley City. "Maybe if it were a Target or a ShopKo or a Kohls, then I would care."

The announcement of an agreement with Taubman Centers to build a new store in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints huge downtown renovation project surprised many employees and Salt Lake residents who had pretty much accepted the idea of downtown without Nordstrom.

Previously, Nordstrom had said it wouldn't stay in Crossroads Plaza, citing concerns about parking, the tenant mix and the downtown market. It had asked the City Council to rezone The Gateway shopping center — three blocks west of Crossroads — and allow the retailer to move there. The City Council refused last year.

That refusal prompted the company to reiterate its plans to leave downtown in August 2005 when its Crossroads lease expires.

While few specifics of the estimated $500 million project have been revealed, the church, through its development arm, Property Reserve Inc., has said it plans massive redevelopment of its two downtown malls, the ZCMI Center and Crossroads Plaza on Main Street.

However, that all changed when company President Blake Nordstrom saw Taubman's latest redevelopment plans.

Those plans include placing more housing downtown as well as some higher education elements to support the retail.

Small business owners say ripple effects of the church's redevelopment and Nordstrom's decision will only help build vibrancy and customers into the city's sometimes retail-challenged center.