Tourism is big business in Cowtown, and the City of Fort Worth is banking on its remarkably modernized Convention Center to be a major magnet in the coming years. A VIP ribbon-cutting was held on Monday, December 8 ― showing off the transformation. Here’s what Phase I of the Fort Worth Convention Center’s expansion has added, and what’s still to come as Phase II gets underway in 2026.
“New additions to the center, which remained operational during the past two years of construction, are now fully complete and open to convention clients and to the public,” the city says.
The ceremony included Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker, Public Events Director Mike Crum, and Visit Fort Worth President & CEO Bob Jameson, among others. They gathered near the new southeast entrance of the Fort Worth Convention Center, “which includes a lantern box atrium lobby and retail coffee bar called Beltbuckle Brew.”
The Fort Worth Convention Center has hosted major sporting events, concerts, political rallies, conventions, and trade shows of all sizes since it opened in 1968. “Owned and operated by the City of Fort Worth, the Convention Center was significantly expanded in 2003,” they say. It currently boasts 230,000 square feet of versatile event space. sports, concerts, political rallies, conventions, and trade shows.
“Fort Worth provides the Texas experience that meeting planners want, and the Phase I convention center expansion and modernization exceeds those expectations,” said Mayor Parker. “This milestone, along with Phase II construction, will increase capacity to host conferences from across the nation, bolstering our already impressive convention and tourism industry.”
Tourism has become a boon for the local economy, adding a reliable $3.5 billion to the Fort Worth economy. Hospitality and tourism are one of its largest employers in town, accounting for more than 30,000 jobs, according to Visit Fort Worth. In 2024, Fort Worth welcomed 11.5 million visitors, and with more film and television series and movies shooting locally, like the ratings-shattering Landman by Fort Worth native Taylor Sheridan, we expect even more tourists will come-a-calling.
The modern updates to the Convention Center will attract meetings from across the state and nation. Phase I accounted for just $95 million of the overall transformation, with Phase II construction estimated at $606 million. It “is anticipated to begin in late 2026 and run through early 2030.”
“This is only the first step in a bolder future for Fort Worth as a convention destination,” said Public Events Director Mike Crum.
“We’ve delivered Phase I on budget and on time, and design is almost complete for the second phase of expansion and modernization. We will have floor plans and renderings to share within the next few months that will illustrate big horizons ahead for Fort Worth’s meeting business.”
Phase I included a grand new Southeast entrance and terrace, along with state-of-the-art food and beverage facilities. Inside, you’ll now find a retail coffee bar for casual networking (called Beltbuckle Brew), plus 11 new loading docks (up from seven), and the realignment of Commerce Street to create a site pad for a future convention hotel and additional retail or restaurants still to come.
“The project emphasizes pedestrian access and improving the area’s walkability and connection to the surrounding neighborhood,” they say. The plan is to connect the Convention Center with the Water Gardens, Trinity Metro Central Station, the new Texas A&M Fort Worth campus, and surrounding hotels.
While it’s amazing, it’s not even the most glamorous bit of the overall project. Over $600 million worth of additions are still to come.
