Lancaster, Pennsylvania
August 25-26, 2008
Over the past forty years or more I've been in or around Lancaster a few times. This was the first time I made an effort to look around, and although I didn't cover anywhere near all of it I was impressed. According to the 2000 census, Lancaster has about 58,000 residents. I know of cities with two or three times that many people, that would love to have Lancaster's dense urban core and downtown activity. Many have destroyed their history, but Lancaster's is to a great extent alive and well.
In addition to its density and history, Lancaster's friendly, thoughtful people are among its greatest assets.
The chairs are a temporary installation; local investors are working to build a
streetcar line downtown, and they intend to put a streetcar on display here to build public interest.
A parking garage! What better way to get an overview and get oriented?
Look at all the buildings! There are surface lots here and there, but most parking is in garages and the real estate is used for buildings. Some are old, some are newer, but there's density.
About halfway down the street on the right is the
Pennsylvania Academy of Music, the last performance space commission executed by renowned architect Philip Johnson. Lancaster's people are justifiably proud to have this venue.
The 1852
Fulton Opera House, or Fulton Theatre, presents quality professional theatre performances and draws audiences from a large area.
Starving Artists Cafe offers a varied menu of good food prepared fresh daily on site. My lunch was a chicken salad sandwich on a lightly-toasted croissant, and French onion soup.
The artworks on the wall are priced at $10 each.
Penn Square anchors the center of downtown Lancaster and is the site of Central Market, the Heritage Center, and the city's two tallest buildings. The Lancaster County
Convention Center and Marriott at Penn Square are being built within the facade of the former Watt and Shand Department Store and are scheduled for opening in Spring 2009.
Central Market is America's oldest farmers' market building. The market is open Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Since the 1730s farmers have been bringing their produce to this site to sell to the public.
Some families have held their Central Market stands since before 1900
The Old Courthouse is imposing both in scale and in style. Surprisingly, I haven't been able to find any information about it on the internet.
An incongruous juxtaposition; modern public transit and a nineteenth century carriage step.
Lancaster has frequent passenger service from trains connecting Harrisburg with the Northeast Corridor at Philadelphia.
The smoke deflectors date from the steam era, and were installed to minimize soot and cinders blowing in the windows in summer.
Wash me, please!
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Growing up in HBG I had a lot of exposure to Lancaster, and I was just in the "Lanc-Lanc" last month for a wedding. It's definitely an okay place w/ a lot of charm. It has an extremely weird mix of people and vibe, but that just adds to its character. Outside of the core it is just like PhillyRising said, though, and there is an awful lot of sprawl.
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