At more than one-and-a-half times the size of Coral Ridge Mall, the new king of Iowa shopping malls is preparing to open next month in West Des Moines.

But while the mammoth Jordan Creek Town Center might overshadow the Coralville mall in size, the expectation that it also will draw away shoppers is a phenomenon area residents and mall managers say will pass.

Hundreds of items for the new Scheels Outfitters store sit in the middle of the new Jordan Creek Town Center mall in Des Moines before being moved into the new store. Press-Citizen/Photo courtesy of The Des Moines Register

"I think in the long-run, our shoppers will continue to go to Coral Ridge Mall," said Monica Nadeau, Coral Ridge Mall manager. "We will be two completely different malls. They will focus on upper-end clients. We are the family destination with the carousel, the ice arena, The Children's Museum .... That will continue to be our focus, to focus on the family."

Chicago-based General Growth Properties Inc. owns both Coral Ridge and Jordan Creek, part of a portfolio that totals 177 regional shopping malls in 41 states.

The $200 million, 200-acre development with "Shopping District," "Lake District," and "Village" opens Aug. 4 before Iowa's tax-free weekend. The two-level enclosed mall with streetscape design has about 120 retailers, a 3.5-acre lake surrounded by eight restaurants, a 150-room Residence Inn by Marriott, a children's play area and an amphitheater.

Opening day is expected to draw about 100,000 visitors, with 15,000 rushing through in the first five minutes, General Growth spokeswoman Julie Jacoby said. Some 300,000 people are expected to visit the development during the weekend, she said.

The migration of traffic is not unlike what happened when Coral Ridge opened in 1998.

During Coral Ridge's first year, retail sales jumped by about $222 million in Coralville and by about $250 million in Johnson County, according to a 2000 report by Ken Stone, professor emeritus at Iowa State University. Meanwhile, Iowa City retailers lost $40 million in general merchandise sales and $6.35 million in apparel sales but gained in eating and drinking sales because of additional traffic.

"It remains to be seen what kind of impact it will have," said Josh Schamberger, president of the Iowa City/Coralville Convention and Visitors Bureau. "I'm confident we have enough other venues and attractions in the area."

Visitors to Johnson County spend about $200 million each year and the tourism industry employs more than 3,200 people, making it the third largest employer in Iowa City and Coralville, Schamberger said.

Jordan Creek is expected to capture about $82 million in Iowa retail spending. The mall also will provide about 3,000 jobs in retail and at 95 percent leased, Jordan Creek still has potential space for more retailers.

"One of the purposes of Jordan Creek is to bring some of the retailers from Kansas City, Minneapolis and Chicago to Des Moines," Jacoby said. "The main trade area encompasses a 50-mile radius and accounts for 30 percent of the state's population."

The restaurant lineup, which includes P.F. Chang's, Joe's Crab Shack and Cheesecake Factory, would rival any restaurant in the United States, Jacoby said. Retailers include Pottery Barn, J. Crew, Apple Computer, Misako, OshKosh B'Gosh, Fossil, Gadzooks and Starbucks Coffee.

Iowa City resident Tiffany Wells, 21, said Jordan Creek might influence her shopping when it first opens but in the long-term she won't change her routine. Coral Ridge Mall and Jordan Creek Town Center's "Shopping District" share 32 of the same retailers.

"If they have most of the same stores that we have here, why would I travel that far to shop?" Wells asked.

The Coralville mall opened in 1998 and attracted Des Moines shoppers to stores like Old Navy and Abercrombie and Fitch, Nadeau said. Since then, those retailers opened at Valley West Mall in West Des Moines and the number of shoppers from the Des Moines metropolitan area has decreased, she said.

Coral Ridge continues to attract 10 million visitors a year and employ more than 2,000 people. There are 120 stores at the 1.2 million-square-foot retail center. At 100 percent leased, the mall sees about three to five spaces a year in turnover.

Flash Digital Portraits of Minneapolis will open a store at the Coralville mall July 29 in the space formally occupied by Fallwelles Gifts. Starbucks Coffee will open at the end of August next to Zales Jewelers. Sarku Japan opened in early July in the food court.

Jordan Creek will bring in a handful of retailers new to Iowa, which could be helpful to Coral Ridge, Nadeau said. If the stores do well there, Coral Ridge could have the opportunity to attract them.