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One of Fort Worth’s most recognizable destinations has a problem created partly by its own success: where to put all the cars.
Now a longtime Stockyards family is moving forward with a major project aimed at adding hundreds of parking spaces near the heart of the historic district.
A new state construction filing shows Leddy’s Garage, a privately funded structured parking project planned at 2458 Ellis Avenue, carrying an estimated construction cost of $14.2 million. Work is currently scheduled to begin Oct. 1, 2026, and continue through Aug. 31, 2027.
The filing follows months of city review for a proposed parking garage associated with the family behind legendary Fort Worth bootmaker M.L. Leddy’s.
And this isn’t simply about replacing one parking lot with a bigger one.
Nearly 300 Parking Spaces Planned
The latest plans call for a four- to five-story garage with approximately 296 parking spaces, replacing a surface parking lot containing roughly 55 spaces.
That could add around 240 net parking spaces on the western side of the Stockyards.
The proposal also includes approximately 2,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space, helping activate the Ellis Avenue and NW 25th Street corner rather than dedicating the entire structure to parking.
Fort Worth’s Urban Design Commission reviewed the project in August and unanimously approved six requested waivers by an 8-0 vote on Aug. 20.
That followed another major approval earlier this summer.
The Fort Worth City Council approved the project’s zoning case, ZC-26-054, on June 9 after it previously received a recommendation for approval from the city’s Zoning Commission. Fort Worth zoning case ZC-26-054
With those approvals followed by the new $14.2 million construction filing, the project is continuing to move closer to actual construction.
The Stockyards Needs More Places to Park
The reason behind the investment becomes clearer when looking at what’s happening throughout the Stockyards.
A traffic and parking study found portions of the district operating well beyond the city’s preferred parking utilization level.
Reported utilization reached approximately 111% along Ellis Avenue, 120% along Exchange Avenue, more than 122% along NW 25th Street and 160% along North Main Street. Fort Worth Business Press coverage of the Stockyards parking study
Those numbers translate into a problem familiar to anyone who has visited a packed entertainment district: drivers circling for spaces, double parking and vehicles spilling into surrounding areas.
Meanwhile, the Stockyards continues adding restaurants, hotels, entertainment and other development.
The city’s project narrative says the existing Leddy family parking lot has become one of the district’s heavily used parking resources as activity in the Stockyards has grown. Fort Worth zoning documents
Replacing that small surface lot with structured parking allows significantly more vehicles to fit on essentially the same piece of property.
A Fort Worth Name Is Behind the Project
The Leddy name also makes this project particularly fitting for the Stockyards.
M.L. Leddy’s traces its roots to the 1920s, when M.L. Leddy began building handmade boots and saddles. The company remains family operated generations later and continues making custom boots and saddles. M.L. Leddy’s official website
Its Stockyards store has been part of the area since 1941.
Today, M.L. Leddy’s operates at 2455 N. Main Street, just beside the proposed garage site. M.L. Leddy’s at the Fort Worth Stockyards
City records identify Franklin Leddy Corporation and W Real Estate Holdings LLC in connection with the property and zoning request. The Franklin family and M.L. Leddy’s have maintained a presence in the Stockyards for more than eight decades. Fort Worth project documents
That makes the project more than an outside developer arriving to capitalize on Stockyards growth.
It’s an investment from a family already deeply tied to the district.
The Stockyards Is Changing Around It
The garage could also fit into a broader effort to make parts of the Stockyards easier to navigate on foot.
As crowds have increased, Fort Worth has explored ways to better manage vehicle traffic through the district, particularly around heavily traveled pedestrian areas such as East Exchange Avenue.
Centralized parking structures on the edges of the busiest areas can help by giving visitors somewhere to leave their vehicles before entering the pedestrian-heavy core.
The Leddy’s site is particularly well positioned for that role.
City planning documents note that it’s within walking distance of major Stockyards destinations including Mule Alley, Cowtown Coliseum, Stockyards Station and the shops, restaurants and entertainment surrounding Exchange Avenue. Fort Worth zoning case ZC-26-054
Instead of sending more drivers searching through the center of the district, the garage could capture hundreds of vehicles along its western side.
Construction Could Start This Fall
Earlier descriptions of Leddy’s Garage placed the investment at roughly $14 million and suggested construction could begin as early as late summer.
The newest state filing provides a more specific—and slightly later—timeline.
Construction is currently scheduled to begin Oct. 1, 2026, with completion targeted for Aug. 31, 2027.
Those dates represent the anticipated construction schedule rather than a guaranteed opening date.
Still, the combination of city approvals and a newly registered $14.2 million construction project shows Leddy’s Garage has progressed well beyond an early concept.
For a district famous for cattle drives, boots and its Old West identity, a nearly 300-space parking garage might not sound like the most exciting addition.
But as the Fort Worth Stockyards keeps growing, finding somewhere for everyone to park has become part of the price of popularity.