The Johnston Brief
If you're new to Johnston, the Town Center is the part of town people mean when they say they're headed to "The Yard" for a Friday movie, a Saturday concert, or the Tuesday market. Here's the plain-English guide: what it is, what's there, when to go, and how to make the most of a night on the green.
The Johnston Town Center is the city's central gathering place on Merle Hay Road (around 6245 Merle Hay Rd), home to City Hall, an outdoor event lawn called The Yard, and nearby restaurants and lodging. In summer The Yard runs a free series (music, movies, and concerts), and Tuesdays bring the Johnston Farmers Market. It sits between City Hall and the GrandStay Hotel.
The Yard is the outdoor event lawn at the heart of the Town Center, and in the warm months it's where a lot of Johnston goes out. The free summer series runs most weekends:
All three are free and family-friendly. Dates rotate through the season, so check the Johnston Town Center events page before you head over, or see our what's on this week guide.
Yes. The Johnston Farmers Market sets up at the Town Center on Tuesday afternoons, 4 to 7 p.m., roughly June through September, in the space between City Hall and the GrandStay Hotel. It's free to attend, with Iowa produce, baked goods, makers and crafts, live music, and usually a food truck. A Johnston tradition since 1989. Full details, including the 2026 season dates, are in our farmers market guide.
The Town Center and the stretch of Merle Hay Road around it have a good mix of local and regional spots, from coffee and quick lunches to sit-down dinners and patios. Rather than list tenants that change, we keep the current lineup in our food guides: see the best restaurants in Johnston, the best breweries and bars, and the best coffee in town. Not sure what you're in the mood for? Let our what to eat tonight picker choose.
A few minutes in any direction adds more to do. Ignit, a large indoor sports and entertainment complex, sits on Merle Hay Road and is a reliable rainy-day and off-season option. The Johnston Public Library (6700 Merle Hay Rd) runs programs and family events midweek. And for a movie, the nearest theater is Flix Brewhouse, a dine-in cinema with an on-site brewery just south at Merle Hay Mall in Des Moines, since the former AMC Classic Johnston 16 has closed. For the whole menu of options, see things to do in Johnston.
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The city's central gathering place on Merle Hay Road (around 6221 and 6245 Merle Hay Rd), home to Johnston City Hall, the outdoor event lawn called The Yard, and nearby restaurants and lodging. It hosts the Tuesday farmers market and a free summer series, and sits between City Hall and the GrandStay Hotel.
The outdoor event lawn at the Town Center. In summer it runs a free series: Tunes at Twilight (music on select Thursdays), Movies on the Yard (a film outdoors on select Fridays), and Sounds of the Summer (evening concerts, roughly 7 to 10 p.m., on select Saturdays).
The Tuesday farmers market in season and The Yard's free summer series (Tunes at Twilight, Movies on the Yard, and Sounds of the Summer), plus city-wide gatherings. Check the Johnston Town Center and City of Johnston pages for the current schedule.
Yes, Tuesday afternoons 4 to 7 p.m., roughly June through September, at 6221 Merle Hay Rd between City Hall and the GrandStay Hotel. Free to attend. See our farmers market guide.
Not currently; the former AMC Classic Johnston 16 has closed. The nearest theater is Flix Brewhouse, a dine-in cinema at Merle Hay Mall in Des Moines. In summer, The Yard also shows free outdoor films on select Fridays.