Borders bookstore will shutter July 21, according to district manager Nanette Mathieu.

"We're moving out because of the mall construction," she said Monday.

Borders has no plans to relocate elsewhere downtown, though Mathieu said the Michigan-based company's real estate division is searching for spots in the market.

The store could reopen after the mall makeover. The LDS Church, which plans a major overhaul of Crossroads and the ZCMI Center, has not given a start or end date for the renovation.

"We will look to come back when they reopen," Mathieu said. "We'll do a negotiation at that time. It's not anything that can be assumed."

The closure of Borders - which occupied more than 20,000 square feet, according to Mathieu - leaves Crossroads nearly vacant. Several smaller stores have moved to ZCMI or closed. Mervyn's shuttered its Crossroads outlet earlier this year.

However, two anchors remain downtown: Nordstrom at Crossroads and Meier & Frank at ZCMI.

It has been more than 30 months since the church announced plans to redevelop the malls. LDS Presiding Bishop H. David Burton assured the City Council in April that the church remains committed to the development. He said the project, which would include up to 900 housing units, would be a "tremendous community asset" and a "good neighbor" to Temple Square and other nearby sacred LDS spots.

But he cautioned that the deal is complex and slow going, because the church must negotiate with 250 entities.

One impediment has been clearing out Crossroad's Key Bank tower, which the church wants to demolish.

Steve Swindle of Vancott Bagley Cornwall and McCarthy said Monday the law firm will move to the Beneficial building on the ZCMI block next spring. Vancott is one of the largest tenants at Key Bank.

The LDS Church declined to comment on Borders' announcement. But Bruce Lyman, a member of the church's redevelopment team, told members of the Downtown Development Committee - a group connected with the Salt Lake Chamber - that the church would be making an announcement soon regarding the malls.

Lyman said the vacancies mean the church is making progress, according to minutes of the meeting.

hmay@sltrib.com