Central Filling Station in downtown Knoxville and South Side Garage in SoKno are popular food truck parks that evolved from former gas stations. And while there used to be a gas station at the corner of Kingston Pike and Campbell Station Road, it was, fortunately, scrapped to make way for a different kind of food truck park.
35 North at Admiral’s Corner is a Farragut food truck park. It was dreamed up by Carlos Cortez and Doug Justus, two Farragut residents and businessmen who, along with another partner, Don Coffey, were thrown together when their kids played on the same sports team. After games and practices, the kids wanted to eat somewhere where they could move around, Justus says, and there weren’t a lot of options in town.
Cortez, who has lived in the Northeast as well as Florida, has seen a lot of food truck parks. But 35 North is unlike any other food truck concept. Three food trucks park in an enclosed bay with water and electric hookups, and customers order from a single point of service. After placing their order, customers can choose from a variety of seating options and can have their food brought to them.
A spacious outdoor patio inside the L-shaped building will feature tables, games, tiered seating, and a large, inviting fireplace. Adjacent to the patio is an indoor/outdoor dining space with a garage door and a platform that could be used for live performances.
Customers can also choose to relax at a unique circular bar in the iconic rotunda at the center of the building and explore a range of beverage options, from the full-service bar to 30 taps pouring a mix of mainstream and local craft brews. Additional patio space will front the road outside the bar. Between the bar and the indoor/outdoor space, an inside dining area offers a more intimate, high-end vibe. The indoor areas feature banks of TVs for sports viewing.
The goal is to cater to a wide variety of customers, Cortez says. At full capacity, 35 North can accommodate approximately 200 guests.
“It’s multi-faceted. We’ve got a whole mix of things going on here.”
Even though it’s a novel concept, the developers say they’ve had nothing but positive responses from the community. Construction began a year ago, and they plan to open in October. Admirals Corner, in which 35 North is located, has an additional 4,300 square feet of retail space available that fronts Campbell Station Road.
When Cortez and Justus bought the property, they didn’t know exactly what they would do with it, they just knew it was a prime location. A challenge was getting customers in and out, given the site’s proximity to a busy intersection, but it was solved by an agreement with the owner of the adjacent property. A shared driveway and parking were critical to the development.
The building and parking area are surprisingly large. One reason is the building’s situation on the property. Designing the site with the building close to the road and parking behind it is an option for building in Farragut’s Mixed-Use Town Center (MUTC) overlay. 35 North is the second project to be built in the MUTC, after the Farragut Gateway on the opposite corner of the intersection.
Cortez and Justus worked closely with town staff to meet MUTC requirements.
“We planned with them the whole way, so there were no surprises,” Cortez says. “They were very willing to work with us through the process.”
Town staff and leaders were excited about the project, so they wanted to make it work, says Justus. Since 35 North was designed with Farragut in mind, the developers didn’t mind going the extra mile to meet the town’s standards.
“We want to be good partners.”
Town of Farragut public relations and marketing coordinator Wendy Smith is your reliable Farragut Insider.