SHOP TALK : Revving Up for Rush to New Factory Outlet Mall : Although a few of the Oxnard stores opened over the holiday weekend, the big bargain event is set for June 10 to 12.

It has taunted all of us shoppers, in its various stages, for the past 14 months or so, as we’ve traveled along the Ventura Freeway between the Rose Avenue and Rice Avenue exits.

Its walls have beckoned as they’ve seemingly appeared out of nowhere. And now we’re ready. We’re more than ready.

We want to shop--at the two dozen-plus stores that will make up the new Oxnard Factory Outlet. That’s about 150,000 feet of space, dedicated almost entirely to the acts of looking and spending. And that’s just Phase 1 of the Fru-Con Development / U. S. Outlets project. Phase 2 will add about 150,000 feet.

A few of the stores opened Memorial Day weekend. But most of the outlets will begin operation at the grand opening from June 10 to 12. This doesn’t leave us a whole lot of time to clear out the closets.

Carole Little, Geoffrey Beene and Francine Browner. Jockey, L. A. Gear, Linen Room. Corning, Kitchen Connection, Leather Loft. Even The Gap. And Bugle Boy. Paper Factory, Westport, the Publisher’s Warehouse. Benetton, Nine West and Prestige Fragrances.

And those are just some of the shops. Real nose-to-the-grindstone shoppers might consider throwing a sleeping bag in the back of the car the first time out there.

“We anticipate attracting everybody in Ventura County,” said Jamie Barendrick, senior property manager and marketing director for the outlet, “because we’re the first outlet going up in the county.”

But Barendrick said the outlet should attract plenty of out-of-towners as well--”everybody traveling on (U. S.) 101 from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara, or from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles or San Diego,” she said. “We anticipate it being a destination, where people will be coming up on the weekend to shop.” In fact, the city will have a tourism booth set up at the outlet center so that visitors can find out what else the area has to offer.

Don Facciano, executive director of the Oxnard Chamber of Commerce, said he thoroughly expects the Oxnard Factory Outlet to entice shoppers from the San Fernando Valley.

“It will draw from a large area,” he said. “This will definitely be a boost to the community.”

All of this means, of course, that we might be well-advised to go on some sort of exercise routine, so we’ll hold our own amid the throngs.

Think about it. Based on previous openings of factory outlets, Barendrick said, a crowd of about 30,000 is expected to turn out for the grand opening festivities June 10 and 11. She said another 12,000 to 15,000 folks are expected June 12.

But don’t worry, there will be plenty of festivities to go around.

“There will be eight or nine radio remotes. We’ll be giving away a Toyota truck and vacations. There will be flower stands, a petting zoo, the farmers market,” Barendrick said. “There’s going to be a whole host of food vendors on-site.”

Along with the shops, the Oxnard Factory Outlet will have a food court--including a Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, a Subway and a Dragon Express. There will also be a sports bar in a separate location.

“Nine out of 10 men do not enjoy spending an afternoon shopping with their wives,” Barendrick said. “So if they somehow get coaxed up here, we have the sports bar with a satellite dish, six beers on tap and two different wines on tap. I think that’s opening immediately.”

Looks like this may be a family attraction.