"We will absolutely be open," said Nordstrom spokeswoman Brooke White on Thursday, but she wouldn't say where the store will temporarily be placed when the malls are demolished.

A spokeswoman for Meier & Frank's corporate owners said the department store would remain open throughout construction in the same spot at ZCMI Center.

This week, the LDS Church -- which owns the Main Street malls -- and the national mall developer it is hiring, Taubman Centers Inc., said most stores in the two malls would be closed while the bulk of the buildings are demolished.

Neither the church nor Taubman have said what stores will remain, either during construction or once the new malls open, but many spaces are already vacant and some of the smaller tenants say they are on month-to-month leases.

Construction is expected to last at least three years as crews build parking garages underground (they are above ground now), add up to 900 housing units and redesign the malls. It is unknown when construction will start.

Crossroads' Borders expects to stay open. And store Manager Jakob Nyberg knows shopping will be slow. "We're prepared for the fact sales are going to drop off. We'll just do what we can. When they're done in a couple years or however long it takes, it will be, for sure, worth it. It'll be great."

Joe Weakland, owner of the Candy Barrel at Crossroads, said he wants to remain even in a construction zone, or come back once it's finished.

"I certainly hope we do. I don't think anybody knows what the heck's going on. I have my employees who have been with me for years. It's their bread and butter, too."

Carl Stock, manager of Fanzz Sports Apparel in Crossroads, said he knows his store could close. "I haven't heard anything. No real nervousness until it starts."

Lollabella Boutique Assistant Manager Kristiina Stromness hopes her store can stay open and next to Nordstrom, where many of her customers also shop.

"We've been doing so well we want to stay open no matter what."

Richard Wirick, owner of Oxford Shop, Shoes for Men on 100 South near West Temple, hopes Nordstrom temporarily relocates to the former Old Navy building, which the LDS Church owns on the corner of 100 South and Main Street. That way, the convention business at the Salt Palace might browse at his store on their way to Nordstrom.

He only sees positive news in the malls' closure. Locally owned stores like his and neighboring restaurants will get the business the malls lose out on, he said.

Some shoppers Thursday said they planned to avoid the malls once they are under construction, while others planned to continue to browse whatever stores remain.

Cassie Crizaldo, who works downtown, won't be scared away by construction cranes.

"I like Nordstrom so much. I don't want to drive all the way out to [the Nordstrom at] Fashion Place Mall" in Murray.

Bountiful residents Gerry Jackson and Kristy Jackson will likely shop at malls in Murray and West Valley City during the overhaul. "If just one store is going to be open, it's not worth it," said Gerry Jackson.

But when it is done, "it'll be a shopper's dream" predicted Kathleen Moultrie, while browsing at Meier & Frank.

hmay@sltrib.com