Airport numbers keep climbing John Wayne Airport...

Airport numbers

keep climbing

John Wayne Airport officials reported record levels of passengers

in June, with 823,290 travelers using the airport that month,

according to a statement from the airport. That was 10.5% more

passengers than in June 2003.

New security checkpoints were opened recently to more quickly

screen passengers and baggage, and a temporary terminal was added to

accommodate the swelling number of travelers. The crowds were

expected to continue through July and August, according to airport

officials.

South Coast Plaza

gets its resort title

Move over, Disneyland. After about two years of trying, South

Coast Plaza officials have trademarked the mall’s identity as “the

Ultimate Shopping Resort.” A travel writer coined the term in a

conversation with Werner Escher, the plaza’s executive director of

domestic and international markets, but Escher said he took it

seriously and began pitching the idea to the shopping center’s

owners.

With the ocean, luxury hotels and restaurants close by, and

Disneyland Resort and Anaheim Resort also in Orange County, South

Coast Plaza and its 280 stores are a total package as a resort

environment, Escher said. The center boasts more than 24 million

visitors a year and annual revenues in excess of $1 billion.