Tesla is apparently still planning to build a 1950s-style diner at a new Santa Monica Supercharger station.
In 2018, Elon Musk said that Tesla plans to open an “old-school drive-in, roller skates & rock restaurant at one of the new Tesla Supercharger locations in Los Angeles.”
It was yet another “Is he joking?” kind of Elon Musk idea, but he apparently wasn’t kidding.
A few months later, Tesla actually applied for building permits for “a restaurant and Supercharger station” at a location in Santa Monica.
The project laid dormant for roughly three years until new building applications were submitted last month.
But those new plans didn’t include a restaurant, although it did include what would become one of the biggest Supercharger stations in the world.
Now, in response to the current Supercharger station in Santa Monica experiencing some wait times, Tesla CEO Elon Musk says that the restaurant is still in the plans:
Major new Supercharger station coming to Santa Monica soon! Hoping to have 50s diner & 100 best movie clips playing too. Thanks Santa Monica city!
The project has run into some issues in the approval process with the city, but Musk’s comment appears to confirm that it is moving forward.
As of last month, the plan showed 62 Supercharger stalls, solar canopies, and some amenities.
On its Supercharger map, Tesla says that it aims to open the Supercharger station in Q3 2021 and it would add some welcome charging capacity to the area.
Tesla’s 1950s diner
Over the last few years, Tesla has been trying to add more anemities at its Supercharger stations.
It includes lounges and small coffee shops.
A diner would be a first and a more extreme step for Tesla, which has no experience running restaurants, but the automaker could be looking to partner with another company for the project.
In previous comments, Musk talked about Tesla having a retro-style burger joint with waiters on roller skates serving people in their cars while they are charging.
What do you think about this project? Let us know in the comment section below.
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Author: Fred Lambert
Source: Electrek
