Jones Center (Springdale)

The Harvey and Bernice Jones Center for Families, popularly known as the Jones Center, is a public multi-purpose facility located at 922 East Emma Avenue in Springdale (Washington and Benton counties). Dedicated in 1995, the community hub was a gift to the northwestern Arkansas community from philanthropist Bernice Young Jones, wife of Harvey Jones, who was the founder of Jones Truck Lines (JTL). In the twenty-first century, the 220,000-square-foot Jones Center covers more than fifty acres and serves as a recreation, education, and event center that houses conference rooms, fitness facilities, offices for nonprofit organizations, space for weddings and other events, a bike park, swimming pools, an ice rink, and more.

After her husband’s death, Bernice Jones stated that she wished to enact the couple’s commitment to the philosophy of “community first.” From that pledge, the Jones Center was born through the conversion of the JTL truck terminal and administrative offices on Emma Avenue into a community center.

When the facility served as a truck terminal, the long concrete depot could handle operations for forty-four vehicles. Trucks pulled into bays all around the terminal where cargo was loaded, unloaded, sorted, and dispatched to other vehicles. Today, visitors to the Jones Center can see remnants on the concrete floor of the steel tracks that moved shipping containers throughout the terminal. The renovation of the building from a truck terminal to its current incarnation started in phases, beginning with the construction of walls for the chapel and meeting rooms. Next came the ice rink and food court, followed soon by various other sections such as a pool and gymnasium by the spring of 1997.

The mission statement of the Jones Center is to “fuel community connections, cultivating spaces and experiences where everyone can learn, play and thrive together.” In Bernice Jones’s words, “all are welcome who behave as ladies and gentlemen.” No one is turned away based on their inability to pay for programs and activities. This is made possible through the support of donors such as the Walmart Foundation, which provides scholarships and activity passes to area children and families. The Tyson Foods Fitness Center is an important amenity at the Jones Center, offering a gymnasium with an indoor track, indoor swimming pools, and the only indoor ice arena in northwestern Arkansas. Day passes and memberships are available at various levels are available, with members receiving benefits such as discounts on activities and cultural events as well as early registration for some programs.

The Jones Center hosts a multitude of arts and cultural events as well as classes. Recreation and athletics are an important part of the programming at the Jones Center, which features its own bike park. Other activities include programs in ballet, gymnastics, ice skating and martial arts, all at affordable pricing. The center also provides space for regional youth swimming and hockey teams to train.

The Jones Center offers a summer camp program for young people, Funday Sunday activities at the ice rink, and special events that have included circuses, concerts, and dance performances. The Jones Center has also hosted the free Arkansas PBS Family Day where young people could meet PBS television characters such as Clifford the Big Red Dog, Curious George, and Daniel Tiger. Along with the Jones Trust, the Jones Center has partnered with about ninety nonprofit affiliates by providing low-cost office space located at the Jones Center complex itself, the Center for Nonprofits at the JTL Shop in Springdale, and St. Mary’s in Rogers (Benton County).

The 2024 Community Impact Report from the Jones Center cited almost 600,000 visits that year, with about 7,500 memberships. The Friends of the Jones Center Giving Circle is a charitable organization that provides donations for youth and family scholarships.

For additional information:
“Bernice Young Jones (1905–2003), 2017 Inductee.” Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame. https://www.arwomenshalloffame.com/bernice-young-jones (accessed November 7, 2025).

Jones Center. https://www.thejonescenter.net/ (accessed November 7, 2025).

Talk Business & Politics Staff. “Philanthropist Jones Dies at 97.” Talk Business & Politics, September 15, 2003. https://talkbusiness.net/2003/09/philanthropist-jones-dies-at-97/ (accessed November 7, 2025).