B. Altman was confirmed as a tenant in November 1987 and Parisian in March 1988, while negotiations with Sakowitz began in October 1988. 19881990: Opening and early years The first phase of the mall, featuring Bigg's and approximately 20 other stores, opened on July 11, 1988. A month prior to this, Higbee's withdrew from the project after being purchased by a joint venture of Dillard's and Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. As a result, B. Altman was relocated from its originally planned store to the space vacated by Higbee's, thus leaving a vacant anchor store and causing delays in opening the rest of the mall. Immediately after the Bigg's wing of the mall opened, Elder-Beerman was confirmed for the vacated anchor left behind by B. Altman's relocation. As a result, the rest of the mall's opening was delayed to October 1988, and again to March 1, 1989. About one-third of the mall tenants were open by this day, including Bonwit Teller, B. Altman, Parisian, and the food court. By mid-year, Elder-Beerman and Sakowitz had also opened. Other tenants included an Australian restaurant called Wallaby Bob's, a 1950s-styled cafe, Oshman's Sporting Goods, and an eight-screen movie theater called Super Saver. Many of the tenants were unique at the time: Wallaby Bob's was "the first brewery-restaurant in the nation that operates in a suburban shopping mall", while another tenant, Koala Klubhouse, was the first licensed day care to be located in an American shopping mall. Another major tenant present at opening day was a entertainment complex called Time Out, featuring a carousel and miniature golf course. A 1989 article in The Cincinnati Enquirer described the mall as "entering uncharted waters" due to Sakowitz, B. Altman, Parisian, and Bonwit Teller all being not only new to the Cincinnati market, but also due to the higher-priced merchandise available at those stores, in comparison to the area's more blue collar demographics. LJ Hooker filed for bankruptcy soon after the mall opened due to debt accrued by the company's expansion in the United States. The company put Forest Fair up for sale in June 1989, with an asking price of $200 million. At this point, only 65 percent of the inline mall space was occupied, and the mall was described as "struggling" due to the large number of vacancies, primarily in the B. Altman wing. The proximity to both Northgate Mall and Tri-County Mall was also cited