Downtown Food Truck Park Opening This Week

[Metro Jacksonville]

Downtown Food Truck Park Opening This Week



Downtown’s first food truck court opens on Thursday Feb 23rd at 11:00AM.

Read More: http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2017-feb-downtown-food-truck-park-opening-this-week

[Keith-N-Jax]

): Wish I was in town for this, please take lots of pics, thanks

[lowlyplanner]

Please come out and check us tomorrow!

Or Friday, Monday, etc., etc.

[lowlyplanner]

We had a big opening day!

Drop by today for Mr. Potato Spread, Tikis, Dagwood's and Full of
Crepe!

[thelakelander]

): Wish I was in town for this, please take lots of pics, thanks

I have a few pics on my phone. I'll upload them in a few minutes.

[Captain Zissou]

We had a big opening day!

Drop by today for Mr. Potato Spread, Tikis, Dagwood's and Full of
Crepe!

Some of the name puns are getting out of control.  Sad I missed the Butt Hut yesterday, their food is great.

[thelakelander]

[BenderRodriguez]

No one sees this as a cop-out of the ground level retail that was originally supposed to occupy this garage in the first place?

[johnnyliar]

No one sees this as a cop out of the ground-level retail that was originally supposed to occupy this garage in the first place?

It's exactly what I was thinking actually!

[Steve]

It is of sorts, but I still think it's a good thing. Look, the downtown restaurant is viewed as strong Mon-Fri for lunch. It's not viewed as strong for dinner.

If the SunTrust building people thought it built retail it would fill with restaurants, they would have built it already - they aren't afraid to make money. Their view is that they don't think the retail would be filled.

The T-U said that the trucks pay $35/day to lease their spots. Let's assume all four spots are leased for each working day in a month, and nothing else. That would be $3,220/month ($35*4 trucks*23 weekdays in a month). I have no idea if Jack and Mike are taking a cut (good for them if they are but not my business to know), but let's assume they aren't and the lease with the building owner is $3,220. You couldn't build that much retail and expect to cover your construction note for $3,220.

I'm going to assume that if you built a building on the food truck area alone (And the associated seating area) that it's about 3,500 SqFt of space. Assuming a price/SqFt of $125, that would cost around $450,000 to build. I could dive further into the math, but evidently the SunTrust building owners don't think they can make it back.

I think this is a great way to test the waters, and give people the variety that a standalone restaurant can't do. If those spaces are filled every day, lunch and dinner (which they won't be today), then I'd be shocked if the SunTrust people don't build the retail.

[Keith-N-Jax]

Thanks for the pics

[ProjectMaximus]

I'm going to assume that if you built a building on the food truck area alone (And the associated seating area) that it's about 3,500 SqFt of space. Assuming a price/SqFt of $125, that would cost around $450,000 to build. I could dive further into the math, but evidently the SunTrust building owners don't think they can make it back.

Exactly why they should have been required to build it into the original design/construction...

[MusicMan]

$125 per square foot would be a retail sales price. GC's should be able to build out something functional for way less. Say. $75 per square foot.

[KenFSU]

Look, the downtown restaurant is viewed as strong Mon-Fri for lunch. It's not viewed as strong for dinner.

To this point, I'm curious what the reaction to the new food court has been from the brick and mortars downtown who must contend with the above while shouldering the much higher overhead associated with occupying a fixed space. The great food truck vs. brick and mortar debate is so three years ago, and I think most reasonable people would agree that food trucks are a net positive for the community and for downtown vibrancy, but in this particular case, I do have some empathy for the restaurant owners taking a chance on downtown Jacksonville who must now compete daily with four new mini-restaurants, operating in an absolutely prime location, with none of the associated costs or risks they face.

[thelakelander]

No one sees this as a cop-out of the ground level retail that was originally supposed to occupy this garage in the first place?

No, I don't see it as a cop out. The deal to add retail died years ago, when the entity that agreed to do it, flipped the property before its completion. There's nothing on the books holding the current owner to do anything with this site. The fact that two forum members had the foresight to at least approach the new owner with a way to activate the sapce is a blessing. Also, from what I understand, there's more in the works here, than just a couple of food trucks. This block has the potential to become the interative space that Hemming has struggled to achieve, depsite the millions poured into it.  I'm exciting to see what the future holds.