(TOP) Bob Aptaker,  Macerich executive vice president of development, leads a VIP behind-the-scenes construction tour to a group of forty guests at Santa Monica Place on Wednesday, August 6, 2008. (ABOVE)  Ashley Walkley, marketing manager for Santa Monica Place,  looks chic in pink while touring the site on Wednesday.  Santa Monica Place is being completely transformed from an existing 1980s-era, enclosed shopping center to a three-level, open-air retail destination that will include a signature rooftop dining deck. The design takes the roof off the central portion of the current mall to provide for open-air walkways and spacious public gathering areas. The 550,000-square-foot Santa Monica Place is scheduled to re-opening in fall 2009.