The marina at Lake Weatherford is open all year. Texas Parks and Wildlife lists it as a fee-required launch with a convenience store, tackle, bait and courtesy docks. The agency's notes on the lake say crappie bite best in winter and spring, and the best catches come from "the enclosed fishing dock and the marina," with minnows first and jigs second. Up the shore, the sand beach is quiet in November, as it is every year.
That beach is now city property in practice as well as on paper. It is the only piece of the waterfront Weatherford took back this year, and it happens to be the piece that sees the least use until spring. Everything that stays busy in the cold months stays with the operators who already run it.
Who runs which part of the shoreline now
The City of Weatherford owns the Lake Weatherford marina. Randy Plyler runs Tavern on the Lake and the other marina facilities under a lease and concessions agreement with the city, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The agreement used to cover the beach as well. Now it does not.
| Piece of the waterfront | Who operates it now | Changes on the way |
|---|---|---|
| Beach | City of Weatherford | Full renovation, completion targeted for spring 2027 |
| Tavern on the Lake | The Plylers, under the city lease | None in the city's plan |
| Boat slips | The Plylers, under the city lease | Any upgrades are left to the operator |
| Crappie house | The Plylers, under the city lease | Any upgrades are left to the operator |
| Bait shop and mechanic shop | The Plylers, under the city lease | None in the city's plan |
How the shoreline got divided
The city's first proposal was larger. As the Star-Telegram reported, Weatherford pitched a $1.8 million overhaul of the waterfront: $1.5 million for the beach, $200,000 to renovate the crappie house and $100,000 for the boat slips. To do that, the Municipal Utility Board planned to take back several facilities from the concession, and Plyler told the board those operations made up just over half of his total revenue.
The Community News described a week of social media posts and a petition that ended in a packed room at the May 28 Municipal Utility Board meeting. The paper later ran a correction. According to the city, the lease already let either side end it with 90 days' notice, and no termination notice was ever issued. The board's final decision ended the agreement for beach operations only and left everything else as it was.
The Plylers posted their response on the Tavern's Facebook page, which the Star-Telegram quoted:
"Yesterday, a compromise was reached that allows us to continue operating the marina and Tavern, while the City moves on with their beach project, and for that we are grateful."
City spokesperson Erin Spicer gave the paper the city's reason in one sentence. "The change is that the City is moving forward with bringing the beach area under City operation so it can be improved and made free and open to the public," she wrote.
Why the split works out by season
The $200,000 for the crappie house and the $100,000 for the slips were cut from the city's plan. Spicer said any improvements to those two facilities would be up to Plyler. As a result, the part of the lake the city is rebuilding is the part built around warm-weather use: sand, volleyball courts, shade and outdoor showers.
The part it left alone is the part TPWD points to for winter. Crappie peak in winter and spring, and the agency names the enclosed fishing dock and the marina as the best spots. TPWD also rates catfish fishing good year round on this lake, with chicken gizzards, blood bait and crawfish as the usual baits. The marina, at least, stays with the same operator under the same lease.
That timing works in residents' favor. Construction will happen during the months when the beach gets the least use, and the target finish lines up with the start of the warm season. In its May release, the city said beach construction would begin after the summer season, with completion targeted for Spring Break 2027.
What $1.37 million gets the beach by spring
The contract is signed. The Utility Board approved a construction contract with Patcon Services, LLC for no more than $1,367,871, out of a total project budget of $1.5 million, according to a Citizen Portal summary of the meeting dated September 23, 2026. In October, the city's parks department reported that it had "executed a construction contract with Patcon Services, LLC for the Lake Weatherford Beach project, with an estimated completion in Spring 2027," as the Weatherford Ledger reported on October 21.
The design presented to the board includes:
- A block seawall and restored beach sand
- A restroom building with outdoor showers
- Two large pavilions and three small pavilions
- Sand volleyball courts
- More parking, plus lighting
- A connection to the planned Lake Trail
The rules are simple. The city's announcement says the beach and restrooms will be free to use. The pavilions, palapas and volleyball courts will be first-come, first-served unless someone has reserved them. "Whether families are spending the day by the water or residents are walking and biking the future trail, we want this to be a place people can experience and take pride in," Jaycob Kirkpatrick, the city's Director of Parks, Recreation, and Special Events, said in that release.
The city is doing other work at the lake too. The same quarterly parks report noted that crews brought in goats to clear vegetation from the Lake Weatherford hillsides.
A winter afternoon at the lake, as it stands
None of the shoreline that matters in cold weather is changing hands. Here is what the current listings show.
Tavern on the Lake is at 210 W Lake Dr., Weatherford, TX 76087. Its Experience Weatherford listing describes a year-round restaurant serving local craft beer, a full bar, burgers, catfish and other American food. The listing also mentions Wednesday bingo, Thursday live music and Sunday Dallas Cowboys watch parties. It does not give hours, so call 817-550-6408 before you go. The Tavern also had a cameo in the third episode of "Dutton Ranch," the "Yellowstone" spinoff, as the Star-Telegram noted.
The marina launch is open all year and charges a fee, according to TPWD's access page for the lake. The listed number is 817-597-0418. TPWD also lists two unimproved ramps at the upper end of the lake that suit only small aluminum boats, and notes that overnight camping is not allowed anywhere on the lake.
The fish at Lake Weatherford are mainly largemouth bass, white bass, crappie, channel catfish and sunfish. All of them fall under Texas statewide freshwater regulations. TPWD rates sunfish as excellent and bass, catfish and crappie as good. Fish hold around the piers, the boathouses, the riprap along the dam and the man-made brush piles in the lower lake. For conditions on a given week, TPWD posts a current fishing report for the lake.
What follows the beach
The beach is the first finished piece of a longer plan. The city's Lake Trail Project will link lake neighborhoods, the marina area, the beach and parking, and it will be built in two phases. Phase 1 is a 10-foot-wide hike-and-bike trail planned for completion in spring 2027, around the same time as the beach. Phase 2 is planned for summer 2029 and will carry the trail across the dam to East Lake Drive.
The city lists the beach, the restrooms and the trail as projects drawn from its General Plan and Parks Master Plan, all meant to widen public access to the lakefront. Under the current schedule, the free beach and the first trail segment open next spring. The tavern, the slips and the crappie house stay as they are now, under the same lease.
If you live near Lake Weatherford and want to know what your home is worth before the beach and first trail segment open next spring, Jennifer Frank can give you a clear local picture, backed by Century 21 Judge Fite Company. Get Your Instant Home Valuation and start with a real number.
