One of Knoxville’s most recognizable areas is about to look very different.

The University of Tennessee has officially broken ground on 865 Neyland, a new entertainment district planned for the area between Neyland Stadium and Food City Center. University leaders and development partners gathered Sept. 19 to mark the start of construction on a project designed to turn the stadium area into more of a year-round destination.

The idea goes well beyond football Saturdays.

Plans call for a mixed-use district with new places to eat, shop, stay and gather around two of Knoxville’s biggest venues. The development is intended to bring more activity to the area throughout the year, creating another destination for concerts, basketball games, campus events and everyday visits — not just the handful of Saturdays when more than 100,000 fans fill Neyland Stadium.

That could have a noticeable impact on the way residents and visitors experience this part of Knoxville. Today, the area between the stadium and Food City Center is largely defined by major event venues, parking and campus infrastructure. The new district is meant to add restaurants, retail, entertainment and lodging directly into that environment.

The project also reflects a larger change happening around downtown Knoxville. Covenant Health Park and its surrounding development are reshaping the Old City and East Knoxville side of downtown, while new restaurants, housing and businesses continue to fill in other parts of the city. Now UT’s riverfront side of downtown is entering its own major redevelopment phase.

For locals, the biggest thing to watch will be how 865 Neyland changes the experience of visiting the campus area when there isn’t a game.

If the project works as envisioned, “going to Neyland” could eventually mean much more than heading to a football game — it could mean dinner, shopping, a concert, an overnight stay or simply spending an afternoon in a new Knoxville district.

Construction is now underway, so the transformation won’t happen overnight. But the groundbreaking marks the point where one of Knoxville’s largest redevelopment ideas moves from renderings and announcements into something residents will begin seeing take shape.

Construction is now underway, moving 865 Neyland from renderings and announcements into a project residents will begin seeing take shape around the stadium district.

As the development progresses, the area between Neyland Stadium and Food City Center is set to become a much different part of the Knoxville experience — one built for activity well beyond football Saturdays.