Westdale Mall announced it signed its first new anchor store under a new redesign plan.

Burlington Coat Factory will open a 40,000 square foot store at the new outdoor mall site, with fellow anchor stores of JC Penney and Younkers. It will be the third Burlington Coat Factory store in the state.

Plans filed with the Cedar Rapids city council show Burlington going into a yet-to-be-built building alongside the current Younkers building.

The existing anchor stores of JC Penney, Younkers and still vacant former Von Maur space are the lone pieces still standing from the original Westdale Mall. The rest was torn down as part of a plan to revitalize the struggling mall space. Westdale will now feature stand-alone anchor stores with other retail, office and living space with exterior entrances.

“Burlington is the first of the new anchor stores and is an important validation of the redevelopment of Westdale," said Westdale Executive Vice President Todd Nelson.

Westdale says the addition of Burlington will allow it to accelerate deals with several additional retailers, including a new-to-the-market "junior anchor" store.

“We have initial space for approximately 10 to 15 specialty retailers, and our focus now becomes moving those deals to completion, which will further strengthen the development as a shopping destination," said Lisa Rowe, Westdale General Manager.