The fact that her dress shop, Bliss, shows strong sales - even "fabulous" sales - despite its location at the half-empty ZCMI Center mall in downtown Salt Lake City is hard for the owner to explain.

But it's a story being told by many of the more than two dozen mom-and-pop retailers who remain at the mall. Few want to leave after the holiday season when the mall owner, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, will close ZCMI and neighboring Crossroads Plaza mall to make way for City Creek Center, an estimated $1 billion project that will include new retail, housing and office space.

"We're not going to go until we hear they've knocked the mall down," Beckstead says, standing in a Cinderella land of bridesmaid dresses and ball gowns.

ZCMI may be outdated, but its location can't be beat - next to Temple Square and its 5 million annual visitors, and within feet of half a dozen office towers filled with thousands of office workers.

And that's why the downtown malls' remaining tenants hope to return when City Creek opens in 2011. But the reality is most can only hope to be somewhere near the massive development.

After all, the LDS Church has paired with national mall developer Taubman Centers Inc., known for its upscale malls that draw high-end chains, not homegrown five-and-dimes and other small enterprises. As with any new development, rents at City Creek are likely to be higher, and likely out of reach for current ZCMI tenants.

"I'm not a designer store and I know I don't generate the type of sales to be able to be part of the Taubman project," says Kent Parry of Parry's Office Supply. "But I still want to be downtown."

Parry has been at the ZCMI Center for more than three years. Like other tenants, he hopes the church will find him space nearby, both during the massive redevelopment and after it is finished. But he's worried about finding a location where he can turn a profit.

"People aren't going to walk to Third South for me," he says. "I need to be within convenient walking distance to downtown office buildings, the Family History Library and Temple Square to make it."

ZCMI Center and Crossroads' anchor tenants, Nordstrom and Macy's, have said they will return when City Creek opens in 2011. And while church officials say some other existing stores also will reopen, they also note these ventures must be "compatible with the new retail format."

Stuart Christensen knows his Mr. Mac suit store won't fit in.

"As much as I'd like to have the panache of Nordstrom, we just don't have it," he says. "We're selling value instead of prestige."

The best Mr. Mac can do is to try to find a spot around the new project, he says. In the meantime, he wants to remain downtown during construction, although he knows it will be rough.

"We will have to be aggressive to entice people to get here," he says. "With Macy's and Nordstrom closing, we need to be able to get out the message we plan to be open - somewhere in the downtown area - during the entire process."

While Cindy Robison's Chocolate Covered Wagon has been struggling, she is looking forward to the Christmas season when tenants in surrounding office buildings like to buy her Utah-themed sweets to send to clients out of state.

"Christmas hopefully will make it worthwhile, sticking out these last really bad months," says the owner, who also runs candy shops in Sandy and at Trolley Square mall in Salt Lake City.

She would love to be part of the new mall - but knows that's far from certain.

"I understand [Taubman] is very well respected and they know what they're talking about. It will depend on what they're looking for," Robison says. "I would definitely hope they would talk to us. It would be nice to even be talked to."

Kristen Kjar of Tie One On, a tie and T-shirt shop, says she has done well in recent years at ZCMI Center, but probably couldn't make it paying City Creek Center's anticipated high rents.

"We really wish we could stay here," Kjar says. "This was such a wonderful location. I don't know if it was because we were by Deseret Book, or the food court, but we did well and I hate to close it down."

Jared Foster, owner of a watch and accessory kiosk near Macy's, has been in the ZCMI Center for seven years. He says this has been his best year ever.

He finds it difficult to think about closing up and moving out once the holidays are over. But he has pretty much resigned himself to the fact that will happen. "The hard part is that we're a small business and we have so little control over anything," he laments. "Actually, make that no control at all."

Even closing dates are unclear to the tenants. Some have been told their last day will be Dec. 31. Others say the end of January.

Rich Bennett is taking the construction as an opportunity to rename his salon from Gloria's (named for his mother) to Rich's Cuts. After 16 years in ZCMI, he will move to 139 E. South Temple, close enough to continue to serve his business customers. He's excited for the redevelopment, believing it will bring shoppers back downtown once it is complete.

Glad to be out of the way of the construction cranes, he doesn't know if he will be in the church's new development when the dust settles. "We'll have to see what's available and how much [rent will cost]. Anytime you have something that'll be that nice . . .," he says, trailing off.

Hairdressers at Premier Salon, a 25-seat operation, don't know when they have to move out, probably when Macy's closes sometime in January since the salon is inside the department store. Manager Colene Sweat, who has coiffed thousands of heads in her 23 years there, says she is looking for a downtown spot to hang on to the beauty salon's long-time customers.

"At first it [the closure news] was kind of upsetting," Sweat says. "But you know, one door closes and a new one opens. It'll be really sad the day it closes. We have so many loyal customers."

Adds Martie Frasier, who has worked there for 31 years: "Our concern is to take care of our clients and continue to serve them because that's our business."

Back at Bliss, Beckstead wants to return in 2011. But she's not counting on it and is already negotiating to move to malls in Layton or Ogden.

"I know my future is my responsibility," she says. "It's not the mall's."

lesley@sltrib.com

hmay@sltrib.com