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McKinnon has already attracted some of Portland's best-known carts to the project, including new locations for

and

, a soon-to-relocate

and a new concept from

.

The Row, tucked into a Southeast Second Avenue parking lot behind the Rotture and Branx nightclubs and across the street from the former Tazo Tea headquarters, abuts a small commissary kitchen set up by McKinnon two years ago, a convenience that few carts can afford.

With very few residential neighbors, McKinnon plans to host live music and envisions the pod someday becoming a small hub for late-night snacking.

"At Cartopia, we've faced a lot of noise-complaint problems. We've had to stop having shows and DJs," he says. "I want to try to do a lot of events down here."

Growing demand

Sweitzer, who bought the City Sign building surrounding the pod, thinks The Row can work hand-in-glove with the city's Produce Row re-branding plan, which includes the new name, a website and a video introduced by Mayor Sam Adams at a launch party last week.

"The restaurants that are downtown here today -- Produce Row cafe, Boke Bowl, Bunk Bar, Olympic Provisions -- they're slammed," Sweitzer says. "They're open at lunch, they're full. They're open at the evening, they're full. As the creative businesses start to grow, and as the city and the Portland Development Commission start to promote the neighborhood, they want to see food and drink grow as well."

There's likely to be demand for it. Sweitzer notes The Row's proximity to a handful of major projects that will bring hundreds more workers into the area just east of the Willamette River and west of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, such as the upcoming Burnside Bridgehead redevelopment and the Eastbank Commerce Center, home of Clarklewis restaurant.

"This is just the beginning of a lot of changes you're going to see down there," he says. "The changes that have already happened are unseen."

"It's the resources"

Big-Ass Sandwiches is more than just a sandwich cart. After making the final round of the Travel Channel show "Adam Richman's Best Sandwich in America," it's become a tourist destination with a draw not far from that of Voodoo Doughnut's original location one block away.

So why move across the river, to a neighborhood with far less foot traffic?

"We don't even have a Dumpster (at the current location)," says Lisa Wood, who co-owns the cart with her husband, Brian. "Now we're going to have gray water, recycling, bathrooms, water, seats, a bar, all these other carts. And it's less rent, which is amazing. If you look at what we can do right now and what we're going to be able to do, it's just a vast difference."

The Row is scheduled to hold a grand opening Oct. 26. Already, McKinnon has heard from several cart owners looking to relocate; some, like the Koi trucks, are moving from Southeast Portland's popular D-Street Noshery pod, which is set to close next month. Room in the small at lot at 304 S.E. Second Ave. is quickly filling up.

At first, The Row will open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. But come nicer weather next year, McKinnon envisions the lot becoming a nighttime destination, with live music and carts open until 3 a.m.

"I've lived here for 11 years," McKinnon says. "I've always loved this neighborhood, always went to parties at the City Sign building. It seems like there are big things going on now, Bunk Bar, the whole Eastbank Commerce building. I'm just psyched about this whole project."

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