The mall underwent a slow decline in the 21st century, owing mainly to the center's age and increased competition, and lost all of its anchors.

Joseph Meyerhoff, a real estate developer whose firm had built several shopping and residential properties in Baltimore, Maryland, announced plans for the Tri-County Center in 1959.

[1] Consulting firms helped select the mall's site, at the northeastern corner of Princeton Pike and Kemper Road in the suburb of Springdale, just south of the then-under construction Interstate 275 beltway, after determining that the area had the greatest potential for future suburban growth.

A 1960 article in The Cincinnati Enquirer described the mall as "landscaped to give the appearance of a park", while also noting that it was the largest center built by Meyerhoff at the time.

Unlike the rest of the mall at the time, the expansion wing was enclosed, featuring palm trees, tropical plants, and fountains, along with antique lights and skylights.

Tenants in this section of the mall included Casual Corner, Lane Bryant, Spencer Gifts, Hickory Farms, and Waldenbooks.

This included the Outdoor Living Show, which allowed mall patrons to view campers, boats, patio furniture, and outdoor grills for purchase in the summertime;[10] Safety Town, a five-day program hosted by Springdale's police and fire department to educate young children on traffic safety;[11] and symphony concerts every August.

[12] All of these were included in the mall's tenth-anniversary festivities in 1970, along with a number of mall-wide sales and a teen fashion show held by Shillito's.

[14] Further renovations came in 1976 when the main mall entrance was redecorated in earth tones, while also adding decorative fountains and eight kiosk shops.

The opening of this food court coincided with 25th anniversary festivities, including a raffle with a grand prize of $7,000, a candle-lighting ceremony, and a sock hop.

A 1985 Cincinnati Enquirer article also noted that the mall's existence helped to draw more business and industry to the Springdale area.

Under these plans, Springdale Town Center would include 1,000,000 square feet (93,000 m2) of mall space, with JCPenney and McAlpin's as proposed anchors.

[31] Equitable Life Insurance put Tri-County and several other mall properties up for sale in December 1996,[32] due to concerns over saturation in the American retail market.

[38] Also, JCPenney closed its Tri-County location in 2005, and returned to the city of Hamilton with a store at the then-newly built Bridgewater Falls shopping center.

[40] A joint venture of Coventry Real Estate and Developers Diversified Realty (now SITE Centers) bought the mall in May 2006.

[46] To counter the decline in tenancy, SingHaiyi announced a renovation project in 2015, which included the addition of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Outback Steakhouse, and Men's Wearhouse on outparcels, while Shoe Dept.

[42] Other proposals to help maintain tenancy at the mall included a plan to convert portions to offices or other non-retail uses, while replacing the former Dillard's with a dine-in theater.

[48] A 2017 article noted that, despite promises of renovation from the mall's developers, Tri-County had a large number of inline vacancies at the time, primarily on the main level and near the food court.

[49] Among the major chains to vacate the mall in the 2010s are The Limited, which closed in 2016,[50] plus Victoria's Secret,[51] Charlotte Russe,[52] and Things Remembered,[53] all in 2019.

[54] The city of Springdale approved a redevelopment plan in December 2021, which will call for the demolition and reconfiguration of the mall into a series of ten-story buildings featuring retail, offices, and residences.