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Shoppers bring it down to the wire

Paul Clinton

SOUTH COAST PLAZA -- Last-minute shoppers buzzed around South Coast

Plaza on Christmas Eve, looking for that final item to cross off the gift

list.

Steve Halloran, who lives in Newport Beach, said he needed to pick up

a gift for his brother’s wife and his niece.

Buying a gift just under the wire charges him up, Halloran said.

“Just finishing up,” he said, as he walked out of Nordstrom at around

9:30 a.m. “I love the atmosphere. Usually I just wait until the

afternoon.”

Others said they dreaded heading into a crowded mall at the zero hour.

Jim Luzar, a Huntington Beach resident, bought a shirt for his father

at the Gap. It was his final purchase.

“I’m clearly in that camp,” Luzar said, about his aversion toward

malls. “I’m just on my way out.”

Department stores at the plaza opened at 8 a.m. on Monday to give

folks another precious hour to finish their shopping. The other shops

opened their doors at 9 a.m.

It was a short shopping day for retailers, who closed their doors,

along with the plaza, at 6 p.m.

As the last shopping day before Christmas Day, Monday brought out a

steady flow of shoppers. It was shaping up to be far less busy than the

prior two weekend days, mall officials said.

“We expected it to be a busy day, but we don’t expect it to be the

busiest,” said Debra Gunn Downing, the plaza’s spokeswoman. “It’s not

going to be as busy as Saturday or Sunday.”

Activity was fairly steady at the plaza’s carousel, where parents

shuffled their children in for a final ride on the faux horses.

In the morning, shoppers milled around with cups of coffee, pausing to

nail down some final holiday plans on cell phones or sitting down to read

a magazine.

Henry Gluski, after buying some decorative jewelry for his wife at

Robinsons-May, said he enjoyed the experience. Gluski was in town from

Miami visiting relatives in Newport Beach.

“I like to go out and like the atmosphere, as long as it doesn’t get

too overcrowded,” Gluski said. “So far, it has been pleasant.”

* Paul Clinton covers the environment and John Wayne Airport. He may

be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail ato7

[email protected] .

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