The Pierres Dorées area comprises 38 communes where the homes and vineyard buildings were traditionally built from a local limestone rock that is naturally tinted with iron oxide, giving it a golden yellow colour.

The village is surrounded by 6 other communes of Cogny to the north, Jarnioux in the valley to the east, Theizé to the south and Oingt, Saint-Laurent-d'Oingt and Sainte-Paule to the west.

The nearest stations on the high speed TGV train network are Macon-Loché outside Macon about 40 kilometres to the north and Part-Dieu in Lyon about the same distance to the south.

[citation needed] A quarter of Ville-sur-Jarnioux's land area is cultivated and mostly taken up by vineyards that produce wine of the Beaujolais appellation.

As in some other wine-growing areas of France, the local agriculture has become more diverse with vines replaced by crops such as corn, wheat and animal feed as the nation acts to reduce excessive wine output.

A small part of the land is used for grazing for goats and cattle that produce local dairy products, as well as for horses and donkeys.

The quarrying of the golden stone is the only industry of historical significance in the village, other than forges and an agricultural machinery workshop that was active until the 1990s.

[citation needed] Construction of the chapel appears to have begun in the 14th century at a time that coincided with the eradication of the Templar knights.