The first new tenants of the former Kroger store and at Vicksburg Mall, formerly Pemberton Square, are expected to open in the spring, the new owner of both retail spaces said Thursday.

Andy Weiner, president of Houston-based Weiner Development, told the Vicksburg Rotary Club a national clothing chain is negotiating a lease to operate by April in the store’s rear anchor space next to Wilcox Theaters. The company is working with two additional national chains — a family apparel retailer and a pet supply outlet — to open locations in the old supermarket building a month later, Weiner said.

Along with building the base of such professional service-oriented commerce as orthodontist offices, check cashing and an optometry center, the new additions fit into the development firm’s portfolio of small-to-medium retail developments in mid-major markets like Vicksburg and plans to add about three new tenants per year here until it’s full.

“We have a three-year strategy to fill it up,” Weiner said, adding the goal is 95 percent occupancy by that time. Currently, about 70 percent of the mall’s store space is occupied, not including anchor stores Dillard’s, Belk and J.C. Penney.

“We think that to take a mall that has been descending slowly, level it out and turn it to a more stable path, will take time,” he said. “And we ask everybody to please be patient with us.”

In October, the firm purchased the mall from CBL & Associates for an undisclosed sum that included all space at the 47-acre spread except Dillard’s and Belk, which are owned by their corporate entities.

Weiner said 27 investors have joined forces with him in the project, including 10 from Vicksburg, with financing provided by RiverHills and Copiah banks.

New signs for the mall were installed in November; banners will adorn lightpoles on the property by January; and a 75-foot-tall pylon should be erected behind the current Kroger store by next Friday, Weiner said.

“Signage is everything in retail,” Weiner said.

Weiner said he wants to have a kids’ party room for parties and events, as well as a local franchise for cookie and coffee shops, among other concepts. Physical remodeling is planned for areas between each anchor store and around Garfield’s Restaurant & Pub, as stores will be added and entrances will be built so shoppers can see them from the parking lot and from Pemberton Square Boulevard.

“Garfield’s has got kind of a dumpy entrance,” Weiner said. “We’re going to undumpy it by creating a little bit of a pop-up backdrop, better sign field.”

Police presence on weekends at the cinema has remained consistent, Weiner said, with strong support from Mayor Paul Winfield and Police Chief Walter Armstrong, despite the city’s disallowance of uniformed officers off-duty.

“This mayor and this police chief are working with me to modify those rules to be like any other city,” Weiner said referring to Clinton and Natchez.

Armstrong has said any proposal to allow on-duty officers to work the mall needs approval from the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.

The mall was built in 1985 and last renovated in 1996. Weiner Development has holdings in New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi. Until 1997, Weiner managed 159 clothing store locations for Weiner Stores Inc., which went out of business in 2001.