North Texas

Jerry Jones' Hall-of-Fame Impact Extends to Local Businesses

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has had a big impact on all of North Texas, including the businesses located close to AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

Jones will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this weekend in Canton, Ohio, for his contributions to the game.

At J. Gilligan's Bar & Grill, less than a mile from AT&T Stadium, business has never been better since the Cowboys came to town.

"Jerry Jones has changed our business," said owner Randy Ford. "The AT&T Stadium has changed our business."

Fans pack the place on game days, at a time of year when business used to be slow.

"We were always trying to find something in the fall," Ford said. "We never could find it, and now we've got it. And it's AT&T Stadium."

"On game day we will, at a minimum, do triple of what we normally do — three times the amount in sales," Ford added.

J. Gilligan's, a local landmark in its own right, opened 30 years before the Cowboys' stadium did in 2009, and now offers free parking and an $8 round-trip shuttle to AT&T Stadium.

By building AT&T Stadium, Ford says, Jerry Jones saved his business.

"I think that would be a fair statement, yes, I think that would be a fair statement," Ford said. "Let's face it, he is a great businessman and people around him, if they take care of their business, he brings opportunities to people like myself."

"It is absolutely priceless what he's built here," said Arlington city spokesman Jay Warren. "I don't really think if it as a football stadium. Clearly the Cowboys play here, but that's eight events a year. They're (AT&T Stadium) actually hosting 124 events a year here every year."

"The amount of attention that we're getting internationally in media coverage, when you've got the Super Bowl or just a regular Cowboys game, you can't buy media coverage like that," Warren added.

Fans in Arlington say Jones rightly deserves the hall of fame honor.

"He's been a great contributor to the NFL, he's been a great contributor to the city of Arlington," Ford said.

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