The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which owns and plans to demolish the downtown Salt Lake City mall, closed its parking garage permanently Wednesday, just days after it bid adieu its last retail tenant - longtime anchor Deseret Book.

The church is destroying both ZCMI and Crossroads Plaza mall across the street to make way for its $1 billion City Creek Center project, set to include a mix of retail, housing and office space once it is completed in 2011. As part of that development, the former Key Bank building that adjoined Crossroads also tentatively will be destroyed, by implosion, on Aug. 18.

Pam O'Mara, owner of Utah Artist Hands, a store less than a block away from ZCMI that sells Utah-made artwork and crafts, said she's not exactly sad to see the ailing mall finally go.

The two malls struggled for years. Then, last year, the church began to empty it in preparation for demolition.

"It feels like the awful black hole energy of those malls is gone now," she said. "I think people are really excited about something new."

O'Mara said the demolition work has helped to encourage more of the thousands of people who work downtown to discover other parts of downtown rather than stick only inside the malls.

"I have met so many new people lately," she said. "People ask 'how long have you been here?' and when I tell them five years they are shocked."

Bob Farrington of the Downtown Alliance said the closing of ZCMI Mall will have little impact on people who come downtown, even though the mall's parking lot was a popular public parking site.

"I think a little re-education is in order so people know what the other parking options are," he said.

Farrington said a dozen lots and garages within a block of ZCMI mall are open to the public.

Before the ZCMI Center parking structure was closed, the mall's last two tenants resettled close by. Deseret Book on Tuesday reopened in its new downtown location in the Zions Bank building at 10 E. South Temple St. Men's apparel retailer Mr. Mac is now at 160 E. South Temple St.

In addition to closing the ZCMI parking structure and emptying the mall of its last retail tenant, church spokesman Dale Bills said ZCMI's Main Street and 100 South entrances have been closed in preparation for demolition.

Although demolition work is set to begin this summer, the food court will remain open indefinitely until a new food court is built nearby, probably by late next year, Bills said. People may access the food court via South Temple until the new one is built south of Eagle Gate Plaza office tower, 60 E. South Temple St., and north of the new Key Bank Tower, 36 S. State St.

The food court is such a popular lunchtime destination among people who work downtown that the church early on made the decision to keep it open during the entire time City Creek is being constructed. The food court is doing "strong business," Bills said.