THE TUSTIN MARKETPLACE

There are power lunches, power suits and power neckties. But wait, there’s a new concept on the horizon . . . a power center.

For the uninitiated not up on the latest newspeak, a power center is not a shelter where recalcitrant consumers are hooked up to electrodes and zapped until all their plastic is melted into an unusable heap. A power center is the new buzzword for a strip center on steroids--a major open-air retail center that combines the off-price advantages of a community shopping center with the far-reaching drawing power of a regional mall, such as a South Coast Plaza.

Like Orange County needs another mall, right?

“The Tustin Marketplace really isn’t in competition with South Coast Plaza or any of the other regional malls,� said John Allen, a leasing representative for Donahue Schriber, the Newport Beach-based developer responsible for filling the new 80-acre shopping center.

“At regional malls you expect to pay full retail. The Marketplace has more community-type stores that sell merchandise off price. A tenant at a community mall won’t go into a regional mall and vice versa,� he continued.

And it’s true. While there is no Robinson’s, Nordstrom, I. Magnin, Saks Fifth Avenue or designer boutiques to make deep dents in the plastic, there are more moderately priced stores--Clothestime, T.J. Maxx, Ross Dress for Less, and the $5 Clothing Store--that feel right at home at the new 750,000-square-foot, palm-tree-lined center quickly nearing completion.

The mall, which is painted terra cotta and brick red with purple and fuchsia accents, is smartly divided into three distinct sections. One side is dedicated mostly to hard goods and includes such nationally known stores as Home Depot, Stor and the Waterbed Gallery; the opposite corner is predominantly soft goods and is host to Kids ‘R’ Us, Chick’s Sporting Goods, C&R; Clothiers, Payless ShoeSource and the soon-to-open Good Guys, a San Francisco-based audio/video outlet that will open its first Orange County store in the Marketplace this month.

In the middle will be the Village, an entertainment center described by Allen as “fun and festive.� Eventually, the Village will boast a bookstore, Tower Records, a variety of food shops and a six-screen Edwards Cinema.

“We have a tenant mix second to none. We pride ourselves on a good mix so that everyone will do well,� Allen explained.

Store managers seem to agree. Kids ‘R’ Us manager Jayne Monge said business is going well and he likes the location of the Tustin Marketplace. And why not? With frontage along the Santa Ana Freeway, an estimated 200,000 cars daily pass the center with the violet-and-white sign boldly proclaiming “Tustin Marketplace.�

But it’s the plans for expansion in the immediate area that have Ross Dress for Less manager Diane Ershig so enthusiastic. “We love being in the Marketplace. We like the proximity to Irvine, the new homes being built around us and being in a brand-new, exciting center,� she said. “Also, our store is a prototype. It’s a newer look of the Ross stores. The store has more ‘shopability’--it’s more departmentalized. We are consistently busy,� she added.

Home Depot, which will be celebrating its one-year anniversary at the Tustin Marketplace next month, has also profited by location. “This is a great shopping center--definitely a state-of-the-art place. We’re doing great business here,� manager Steve Noren said.

“We’re not a typical shopping center,� Allen said. “This one is unique and has its own character. It’s definitely a landmark location.�

Hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday

Address: 2777 El Camino Real, Tustin

Miscellaneous information: When completed, the Tustin Marketplace will have 70 stores and about 4,000 parking spaces.