But for some, the news Wednesday was a letdown.

Along with Macy's and Nordstrom, Dillard's will anchor the LDS Church's City Creek Center, a mixed-use project slated for the blocks that now house the Crossroads Plaza and ZCMI Center malls. Dillard's, and the new mall, won't open until fall 2011.

A church official called Dillard's - one of the nation's largest department stores, with annual revenues topping $7.7 billion - a "perfect complement" to City Creek.

A Wednesday news release from Dillard's echoed that sentiment. "We are thrilled to be opening a Dillard's store in what will be one of the most exciting retail projects in the country," said Bill Dillard, the chain's chairman of the board and chief executive officer.

But for shoppers and downtown retailers hoping for a fresh face - some had visions of a Saks Fifth Avenue or a Neiman Marcus - the announcement came as a disappointment.

"If we're going to redo downtown, let's do it up right," said Cristie Richards, who was shopping at Nordstrom Wednesday.

"Dillard's is a very good store," said Richard Wirick, owner of the downtown Oxford Shop Shoe Store. "However, I would think they would get a store unique to the valley - give a person a reason to come downtown."

An official with Taubman Centers Inc., which operates 23 luxury malls across the nation and is developing City Creek for the church, said such high high-end department stores never were in the running for Salt Lake City. Utahns' household incomes - the median is $47,934 - are too low.

"The customer base that's necessary to support a Saks Fifth Avenue or a Neiman Marcus just doesn't exist in Salt Lake," said Bruce Heckman, Taubman's vice president of development. "It's not that there aren't significant numbers of customers in that price range. There just aren't enough. . . . I'm not saying they won't ever come to Salt Lake, but not right now."

Neiman Marcus, for one, hasn't written off Utah.

Spokeswoman Ginger Reeder said in an e-mail that the company analyzes demographic and "psychographic" factors before entering new markets. "Sometimes markets that are not right for us at a certain time will have a perfect opportunity arise just a few years later."

And Commerce CRG retail specialist Darrell Tate said companies are taking notice of the higher-end retailers and restaurants locating in Salt Lake City. "If you had asked me 10 years ago if Salt Lake would get a Fleming's or a Ruth's Chris Steak House or an Abercrombie & Fitch, I would have been doubtful," Tate said. "But now here they are, and that's why I would never say never on a high-end department store."

It would take an enormous investment - and risk - to bring a single, new department store to the market, Taubman's Heckman said.

And Lane Beattie, president of the Salt Lake Chamber, added that "most times, people who hope [for a Saks-type store] don't understand the retail business. It's a matter of being successful. That's what these people [Taubman] do. That's why they're the number one mall developer. [Dillard's] will be a great asset."

The chain is upscaling its store designs and merchandise, said Dillard's spokeswoman Julie Bull. "City Creek certainly fits that new tone."

Bennion Jewelers will be across the street from Dillard's. Owner Bill Bennion called the announcement "wonderful." But he said City Creek can't rely on just the three familiar anchors to draw shoppers, particularly when Murray's Fashion Place Mall already includes a Dillard's, Macy's and Nordstrom, along with Sears.

"The hope is they will be flagship stores, and they will be different than suburban stores," said Vasilios Priskos, president of the Downtown Merchants Association.

City Creek is touted as a regional draw, and Heckman said it will be because a "significant number" of the other retailers in the center will be new to the market. Plus, the downtown environment and City Creek's amenities, including housing and a representation of a creek, will be strong lures, supporters said.

Dillard's inclusion is not surprising. A church official accidentally used the name during a Planning Commission meeting last month. And Taubman has plugged the store into at least five of its other malls.

"That's fabulous. I love Dillard's," said Claudia Larsen, a shopper Wednesday at ZCMI Center who said she can find clothes for her mother there that she can't get elsewhere. "Saks and Neiman Marcus are pretty expensive, aren't they? It's fine if they come but the others have good quality."

Stefanie Worsley agreed Dillard's is a "good store," but conceded "it would have been nice to have something . . . we don't have here."

hmay@sltrib.com

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* Tribune reporterLESLEY MITCHELL contributed to this story.

Dillard's operates 330 stores in 29 states, including six in Utah:

* Cache Valley Mall, Logan

* Fashion Place Mall, Murray

* Newgate Mall, Ogden

* Provo Towne Centre, Provo

* South Towne Center, Sandy

* Red Cliffs Mall, St. George

Before Dillard's can open in downtown Salt Lake City in 2011, other stores must close.

* Nordstrom's last day will be Saturday. No special sales are planned because the merchandise will be moved to other stores.

* Macy's has not announced when it will close, though some of its display cases already have gone bare.

* All three department stores will open in four years at City Creek Center.