West Campus Dining Commons at UT Knoxville to Open Soon / by Robert Simmons

SimmonsSTUDIO Architects of Boston, MA and Johnson Architecture, Inc. of Knoxville, TN are thrilled to announce that construction on 81,700 SF of new construction for the West Campus Dining Commons will soon be complete.

The centerpiece of the six acre West Campus Redevelopment at UT Knoxville, the project will provide an innovative 1,300-seat dining venue offering a state-of-the-art exhibition cooking experience, designed by Ricca Design Studios, for the campus. The project will include a campus convenience store and an in-house bakery offering fresh baked goods, and a venue for late night service.

The dining spaces will focus outward toward views of the Smokey Mountain skyline on the horizon. The Johnson Ward Mall project, designed by CRJA/IBI landscape architects, will green the boulevard along the front of the building, incorporating water garden bioswales to calm and filter storm water.

The building itself will act as a connector for the campus as well, bringing the upper and lower parts of the steeply graded hilltop site together, with ADA access by elevator that is open 24/7 as well.