Jonesboro, AR Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Jonesboro's zoning code defines 'Day care, limited (day care family home)' as a home where day care services are provided to a maximum of eight children, with a maximum of two adults in attendance, Sec. 117-2. The operator must reside in the structure, and the facility must conform to all applicable state and local codes and regulations, with the most restrictive standard controlling when they conflict. Babysitting of four or fewer children falls outside the chapter entirely and needs no zoning approval. This is distinguished from 'Day care, general (day care center),' defined in the same section as a commercial establishment serving more than eight children, which must be licensed by the appropriate state agency and follow state day care laws and fire codes.

The residential use table in Sec. 117-138(c) lists 'Day care, limited (family home)' as permitted by right (P) in the AG, RS-1 and RS-2 districts and in the RM-H, RM-4, RM-6, RM-8 and RM-12 multifamily districts, but only as a conditional use (C) requiring planning commission approval in RS-3 through RS-8. By contrast, the higher-capacity 'Day care, general' use is not permitted at all in single-family districts and requires a conditional use permit in the RM-8, RM-12 and RM-16 districts. A day care family home operator who exceeds eight children, keeps more than two adults on-site, or does not personally reside in the home no longer qualifies for the limited-use classification and must instead meet the day care center standards, including state licensing, or relocate to a district and use classification where a day care center is permitted.