 Due to the slow speed at which Forest City Enterprises had begun land clearing and construction, then-city councilman Ray Kapper sent a letter to the developers in July 1973, threatening to repeal the zoning permit for the mall.Kapper later withdrew the repeal after representatives of Forest City Enterprises agreed to sign an assessment that included written plans for the mall's timeline.At this point, company representative Mel Roebuck had announced that in addition to Sears and 60 other stores, the mall would contain a J. C. Penney, and that development beyond land clearing would begin within a month.