The mall's first significant renovation since opening in 1976 began with expansion that started in April 1996. A new JCPenney location was built, the old building demolished and replaced by a new location for Dillard's, and Sears moved into the old Dillard's location. To make room for some of the new construction while maintaining the same number of parking spaces, and with the approval of the Gastonia City Council, the mall reduced the width of the most distant 20 percent of the mall's parking slots from to . The mall's interior was updated, new exterior mall entrances were built, floors and fixtures were replaced, and a relocated food court was opened. While work on the new anchor locations would continue into 1999, principal renovation of the mall interior was completed in November 1998.