More than a year after a massive fire destroyed a longtime Flying J Travel Center in Anthony, plans are now moving forward to bring the property back to life.
Pilot Travel Centers is planning a $12.375 million new travel center at 3001 Mountain Pass Boulevard, the same site where Flying J #724 and its attached Denny’s were destroyed by fire in March 2025.
The new project will span 16,234 square feet and include a Wendy’s restaurant, according to construction records filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Construction is currently scheduled to begin in January 2027.
For Anthony, the project marks a major comeback for a property that once served travelers along Interstate 10 — until one morning changed everything.
Fire destroys Flying J and Denny’s
The fire broke out on the morning of March 21, 2025, at the Denny’s and Flying J complex on Mountain Pass Boulevard.
Firefighters responded to a large structure fire that quickly consumed the building. Anthony Fire Chief Carlos Enriquez told KFOX14/CBS4 that investigators believed the fire may have originated around the kitchen area of the attached Denny’s before spreading through the structure. However, officials had not determined an official cause at the time of the report.
The damage was devastating.
Enriquez said the fire spread throughout the building and essentially brought the entire structure down. The property was ultimately deemed a total loss.
Despite the scale of the fire, there was some very good news: no injuries were reported.
Pilot Company also confirmed that its employees and guests had been safely accounted for following the evacuation. Firefighters managed to keep nearby propane tanks from igniting, avoiding what officials said could have made the incident considerably more dangerous.
Now Pilot is rebuilding
The destroyed property won’t remain empty forever.
On June 30, 2026, a new construction project was registered for Pilot Travel Center #724 at the exact same 3001 Mountain Pass Boulevard address.
And this isn’t a small repair job.
Pilot is investing an estimated $12.375 million into construction of an entirely new travel center.
Plans describe the project as a “new build” totaling 16,234 square feet. Construction is scheduled to begin January 11, 2027, with completion currently targeted for July 30, 2027.
The project has already reached Review Complete status.
That construction schedule shouldn’t be confused with an opening date. Pilot has not announced when the rebuilt Anthony travel center will officially reopen.
Wendy’s is coming with the new travel center
There’s another significant change planned for the rebuilt property.
The former Flying J included an attached Denny’s, where officials believed the 2025 fire may have originated.
The newly filed construction plans instead specifically call for a Wendy’s restaurant inside the future Pilot Travel Center.
Whether Wendy’s will be the only restaurant operating inside the rebuilt travel center hasn’t been confirmed. However, the construction filing clearly establishes the fast-food chain as part of Pilot’s new development.
That means travelers returning to Flying J #724 will find a noticeably different facility from the one that stood there before the fire.
A longtime Anthony travel stop gets another chapter
Flying J #724 wasn’t a new arrival when the fire occurred.
State construction records show Pilot investing in the property as far back as 2011, when a $185,000 restroom remodeling project was completed at Flying J #724 at the same Mountain Pass Boulevard address.
More recently, Pilot continued upgrading the property.
In 2023, the company undertook a $200,000 project to install two electric vehicle charging stations, along with new electrical infrastructure and related site improvements.
Then came the March 2025 fire.
What had been years of smaller improvements suddenly became something much bigger: rebuilding the travel center itself.
Now, more than a year after the fire reduced the building to a total loss, Pilot’s plans provide the clearest indication yet of what’s next for the property.
What’s next for Flying J #724?
If Pilot’s current construction schedule holds, work on the new Anthony travel center will begin in January 2027 and continue through the summer.
When complete, the project will return a major travel center to Mountain Pass Boulevard with a new building, a Wendy’s restaurant and more than $12 million in private investment behind it.
For a property that ended 2025 with little more than the aftermath of a devastating fire, that’s a significant turnaround.
Flying J #724 is coming back — and Pilot is investing $12.4 million to rebuild it.