M.L. Leddy's breaks ground on $14 million public parking garage in the Stockyards

Finding a parking spot in the Fort Worth Stockyards is about to get a little easier. On Thursday, the owners of M.L. Leddy's broke ground on a $14 million parking garage that will be open to the public, NBC 5 DFW reported.

M.L. Leddy's and the Franklin family are building the four-and-a-half-story garage with Parking Systems of America at the corner of Ellis Avenue and 25th Street. Right now the site is a surface lot next to M.L. Leddy's with about 55 spaces. According to the project announcement, the garage will add about 246 spaces, a 32 percent increase in parking on the west side of the Stockyards.

Project leaders said the Stockyards draws about 10 million visitors a year, which puts a strain on its limited surface parking. They expect the garage to cut congestion in the district and take pressure off nearby neighborhoods, especially those to the west that have been dealing with overflow parking.

Owner Wilson Franklin told NBC 5 the garage is meant to serve both customers and the wider Stockyards community. "To be part of the stockyards fabric means carrying forward a tradition of service and genuine Western hospitality," Franklin said. General manager Mark Dunlap called the groundbreaking "a milestone for M.L. Leddy's, the Franklin family and the entire Stockyards community." He noted that the business and the family have invested in the district for more than 85 years.

The project received a conditional permit from the Fort Worth Zoning Commission in May, and the Fort Worth City Council approved it in June. A representative for M.L. Leddy's told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that the garage should be finished in fall 2027.

This story is based on original reporting by NBC 5 DFW, with additional details from Fort Worth Inc., Fort Worth Business Press and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.