Gonzales officially opened the Freeland Jackson Center on Monday morning, giving the city its first dedicated gymnasium after years of borrowing parish school gyms to run recreation programs. The roughly $7 million, 25,000-square-foot facility sits on South Darla Avenue behind Gonzales Middle School and is named for a longtime community volunteer and recreation advocate who spent decades shaping youth sports in the area.
City leaders and community members gathered for a ribbon-cutting and grand opening ceremony Monday morning in Gonzales, Louisiana, with the Gonzales Middle School band and the East Ascension Jazz Band performing for the crowd, according to The Advocate. Aiden Henderson cut the ribbon to formally open the center, and the project's roughly $7 million cost matches estimates reported earlier by Business Report, which had described the project as heading toward a summer debut.
Before the new building, the City of Gonzales relied on parish school gyms to host its recreation programs because it lacked a gymnasium of its own, per the same account from The Advocate. The new center changes that, featuring a full gymnasium, two full-size basketball courts, several meeting rooms, classrooms and conference spaces, and a concession stand for events.
A Namesake Who Spent Decades Building Youth Sports
The center bears the name of Freeland Jackson, who died in 2023 at age 85 after being described as a well-known community activist with a passion for sports. Born in Geismar, Jackson worked as a player, coach, official and mentor throughout his life, and he served on the city's recreation commission for 36 years, from 1974 to 2010. He also worked as a Council on Aging driver for a decade before his death, and he believed baseball and basketball taught respect, teamwork, discipline and confidence.
Jackson's family attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony, and his son, Michael Jackson, said his father valued family, love, integrity and protection, adding that the family hopes to continue his community legacy. Mayor Tim Riley said the center was the best idea the city and its leadership could have pursued, and he described it as representing inclusion, diversity and community, capable of housing a wide range of activities.
Groundbreaking to Grand Opening
The project traces back nearly two years, to a groundbreaking ceremony the city held on Nov. 18, 2024, according to The Weekly Citizen, which reported at the time that the facility would serve as a multi-purpose space for youth programs and events. By September 2025, the newspaper reported the city was estimating a February 2026 completion for the multipurpose facility, which was planned for recreation, youth programs, classes and events. Separately, the City of Gonzales had said the center was scheduled for substantial completion in May, without specifying a year, while Business Report reported it was expected to open later that summer. Business Report also noted that weather-related disruptions and difficulties coordinating construction crews had pushed the project's timeline beyond its initial schedule.
Mayor Riley, in comments to the City of Gonzales, said the center would provide recreational opportunities for residents on a scale never seen before, along with educational assistance for the city's kids. Recreation Manager Marvin Glover said the center is not only about sports, according to The Advocate, pointing to the building's broader role in the community.
What the Center Will Offer Going Forward
City officials say the Freeland Jackson Center is designed to expand activities for children and families across Gonzales. It will house a new basketball league and provide space for summer activities, after-school programs, educational programs and group exercise classes, giving the city a year-round hub it previously lacked.
Photographer Michael Johnson captured the grand opening and the center's facilities for The Advocate's coverage of the event. For a city that spent years working around a missing gymnasium, the new center marks a shift toward keeping recreation programs, and the community gatherings built around them, under one roof named for the man who spent a lifetime building that same sense of community through sports.
