Positioned to be a regional shopping destination with stores such as Walmart, Giant Eagle, Dick's Sporting Goods and Bed Bath & Beyond, the development intended to increase Garfield Heights' commercial base soon developed into a modern dead mall, being built on landfill which soon liquified and caused damage to its buildings, along with fears of methane gas remaining unvented beneath the site which then caused multiple stores to close and abandon the center.

After the big-box stores opened, construction began outside the main plaza for additional restaurants and retail, such as RadioShack, Applebee's, Fatburger, Qdoba (later MC Sports), Steak n Shake, Ruby Tuesday, and a FirstMerit branch.

Bottom Dollar Food departed on November 11, 2010, only lasting under a year at City View Center.

Steak 'n Shake closed their location in April 2019, though that was more related to the chain's overall struggles and decline due to its shifting business models and ownership.

[11] As of February 2018, the vacant buildings on the site were under consideration as potential replacement facilities for Garfield Heights' police department, court, and jail.