Downtown Harrisburg is the central core neighborhood, business and government center which surrounds the focal point of

Market Square The market square (or sometimes, the market place) is a square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world.metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually ...

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. Harrisburg's downtown Center City comprises the original borough laid out in a grid pattern by John Harris in 1785. East–west streets are named and north–south streets are numbered. Market Street, running east–west, is the dividing point between north and south street designations. Harrisburg's

Central Business District A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

includes the

Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex The Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex is a large complex of state government buildings in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Set on more than of downtown Harrisburg, it includes the Pennsylvania State Capitol and a landscaped park environment with monum ...

and other state government offices, the Dauphin County Courthouse and other county government offices, City of Harrisburg offices, Pennsylvania State Museum, federal government offices, and other, non-government related commercial retail and office development. Some residential development, both in apartment high-rises and in the upper floors of mixed commercial/residential use buildings, is also located in the downtown area. Downtown is bordered in the northwest by the mixed commercial/residential use Capitol District, in the west by the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...

, in the southwest by the largely residential Shipoke neighborhood, in the south by

Interstate 83 Interstate 83 (I-83) is an Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its southern terminus is at a signalized intersection with Fayette Street in Baltimore, Maryland; its northern terminus is at I-81 near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Mo ...

, in the east by

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada. ...

and

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...

lines, and in the north by Midtown Harrisburg, a mixed-use commercial and residential neighborhood. Forster Street is usually considered the boundary between Downtown and Midtown Harrisburg. City Island, located in the middle of the Susquehanna River directly west of downtown, is typically considered part of Downtown Harrisburg.

Demographics

As of the 2000 census there were 1,999 people living in downtown. The racial makeup was 64.4%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 27.9%

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

, 2.2% Asian and 4.5% were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race. The largest age group is those aged 25–34 at 19.1% of the population.

Culture

Restaurant Row

North Second Street between Market and Forster is commonly referred to as "Restaurant Row" for its collection and variety of bars, restaurants, and nightlife. Mayor

Stephen R. Reed Stephen Russell Reed (August 9, 1949 – January 25, 2020) was the longest-serving mayor of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Dubbed "Mayor-for-Life," he was re-elected to seven four-year terms, serving from 1982 to 2010. After leaving office, Reed fac ...

's revival of the area during his tenure is commonly known as being the birth of "Restaurant Row" and it continues to be a large draw for nightlife in the region. It is also home to many events, such as the Ice & Fire Festival, the

Saint Patrick's Day Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick ( ga, Lá Fhéile Pádraig, lit=the Day of the Festival of Patrick), is a cultural and religious celebration held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patr ...

Parade, Restaurant Week, Holiday Parade, and "Saturday Nights in the City" outdoor dining, among others. Because of such a large weekend draw, the City frequently employs

Pennsylvania State Police The Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) is the state police agency of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, responsible for statewide law enforcement. The Pennsylvania State Police is a full service law enforcement agency which handles both traffic and c ...

mounted patrols for extra crowd control on weekend nights.

Retail

A small

shopping mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually Anchor tenant, anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant pedestrian zone, a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that ...

, Strawberry Square, is the most notable commercial development in the downtown area, as well as boutique shops in the

SoMa Soma may refer to: Businesses and brands * SOMA (architects), a New York–based firm of architects * Soma (company), a company that designs eco-friendly water filtration systems * SOMA Fabrications, a builder of bicycle frames and other bicycle ...

section South of Market on Third.

Riverfront Park

Major festivals and events take place along Riverfront Park and the

Capital Area Greenbelt The Capital Area Greenbelt is a looping trail located in the area of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. This 20-mile loop around Pennsylvania's capital city provides visitors and tourists with opportunities to hike, ride bicycles, skate, jog, fish, walk th ...

, as well as on City Island.

Education

*The

Harrisburg University of Science and Technology Harrisburg University of Science & Technology, commonly referred to as Harrisburg University (HU), is a private STEM-focused university in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with an additional location in Philadelphia. Founded in 2001 as Harrisburg Polyte ...

, founded in 2001, is located at the corner of Market and 4th streets. *

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then calle ...

has its Harrisburg Campus in Strawberry Square. *Messiah College'
Harrisburg Institute
*

Capital Area School for the Arts The Capital Area School for the Arts (CASA) is a 9th to 12th grade, public charter school located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, USA. The School began as an arts magnet school, which was founded in 2001 as a partnershi ...

is located within Strawberry Square. *The Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts on Market street hosts an

IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme ...

theater, children's science museum with traveling exhibits, a gift shop and

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain. As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 cou ...

coffee.

External links

Center City Aerial IllustrationVisitors Guide to Center City Harrisburg

References

{{Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania Economy of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Neighborhoods in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania