Credit: Historic Fort Worth

Historic Fort Worth will spotlight the Le Meridien Fort Worth Downtown, a stylishly revived hotel with ties to Fort Worth history, during the non-profit’s next membership tour from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday.

The hotel, located at 811 Commerce St., won this year’s Historic Fort Worth Preservation Project Award. The hotel received the recognition for its transformation from a long-vacant building into a thriving part of Fort Worth’s central business district.

The hotel received the award for its sensitive preservation rehabilitation that met the Secretary of the Interior’s standards, according to Steve Kline, chair of the Cantey Lecture Series, where the award was announced. The lecture series, an annual event hosted by Historic Fort Worth, celebrates the city’s architectural heritage through the preservation awards.

This week’s tour of the hotel will offer an educational look at the building with a unique history of what Kline terms “several reincarnations.”

“It is an excellent example of adaptive reuse and sustainability,” said Kline, who has served on Fort Worth’s preservation plan steering committee.

First a Parking Garage

It was first built in 1928 as the Biltmore parking garage for the city’s earliest automobile owners. The recent renovation of Le Méridien Hotel preserves the building’s historic character while offering guests a modern, upscale experience. Before the transformation, while what is now Le Meridien was still just a shell, architect John Roberts, who received his own personal tour from the building’s previous owners.

“I have a little bit of history on it,” Roberts told CandysDirt.com. Besides serving on Historic Fort Worth’s board of directors, Roberts is a former chairman of the board and of the group’s public affairs committee. In addition, he is part of Downtown Fort Worth Walking Tours, and runs FortWorthArchitecture.com.

According to Roberts, the structure was built in a style typical of the 1920s, predating the popularity of Art Deco. Architect Wiley G. Clarkson, who also designed First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth, designed this building. His original plan called for 15 floors of parking, although only four were completed then.

Ready for Convention Center

811 Commerce St. in Fort Worth sat empty before a string of hotel brand turnovers


Le Meridien renovated and re-opened in 2024 as a 188-room hotel. (Photos courtesy: John Roberts)

The pool received a facelift before the hotel opened in 2024.

In 1968, Hotel Texas purchased the structure, in response to the city’s new convention center. Between 1968 and 1970, the structure was expanded to reflect the mid-century architecture popular at the time. By 1970, the building was converted into a hotel annex. During that time, Sheraton acquired Hotel Texas, rebranding the property and adding eight floors atop the original garage. The rooftop parking was enclosed, and the building received a mid-century modern façade, bringing it to 13 stories.

The building remained in use until 2006, when Hilton opted not to renovate it. It sat vacant for nearly two decades before reopening in 2024 as Le Méridien, a boutique hotel with 188 rooms and a rooftop lounge.

Credit: LeMeridienFortWorth on Instagram

Then in 2024, the building was renovated after several years of vacancy using historic federal and state tax credits. Kline said the project was reviewed and approved by the Texas Historical Commission and National Park Service, following the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation.

The New Look

Those standards required the building’s exterior to remain largely unchanged. However, developers were permitted to add a canopy entrance on Commerce Street and enhance exterior lighting, Roberts said. A 14th-floor penthouse was added, featuring a terrace with southeast and southwest views, along with a smaller terrace overlooking downtown. The sixth-floor pool, an original amenity from the 1970 expansion, was refurbished because of its age.

“I like the result overall,” Roberts said. “I think it turned out a lot better than I thought it would considering the building’s age and Midcentury Modern look.”

If You Go

2025 Membership Tour Le Méridien Hotel
811 Commerce St., Fort Worth
Thursday, November 13 from 5:30 p.m. – 7 p.m.

  • Guided access to preserved architectural details and contemporary design elements
  • Behind-the-scenes stories of the building’s transformation and its role in downtown Fort Worth’s evolution
  • A rare look at how adaptive reuse brought this historic treasure back to life

Tickets: $25 for the public. Members of Historic Fort Worth admitted free. More information is available at HistoricFortWorth.org.