List of Allentown Neighborhoods - Center City

Center City

• 7th Street
  (North 7th Street from the city line to the north through Linden Street to the south)
  7th Street is a retail and residential corridor just north of downtown Allentown. It is Allentown's fastest growing commercial corridor and serves as the primary gateway to the city, with an improving appearance over the last few years through new street lights, planters and waste receptacles. Neighborhood service establishments and family-owned ethnic restaurants dominate business on 7th Street. A small colony of artists have begun to settle in this area of Allentown. 7th Street revitalization is organized by local volunteer citizen committees through a Main Street Program, 7th Street Allentown This program is a result of the City of Allentown participating in the State sponsored Main Street program for the area of North 7th Street between Linden and Washington Streets as a "Main Street." The Seventh Street Development Committee (SSDC) acts as the program's advisory body, and the Community Action Development Corporation-Allentown manages the program. The program follows the National Main Street Center's Four Point Approach of organization, economic restructuring, promotion, and design to structure the SSDC's comprehensive strategy. The SSDC follows an annual work plan and is assisted by a Main Street Manager.
• Downtown
  (4th through 12th Streets to the east and west, and Walnut through Linden Streets to the south and north)
  Downtown Allentown is the city’s central business district. It is home to several large employers such as PPL and The Morning Call and is host to city, county, and federal government centers. While downtown is no longer considered the premier regional shopping destination of the Lehigh Valley, dozens of small businesses and several prominent restaurants and nightclubs, including Robato of Tokyo, The Bay Leaf, the Allentown Brewworks, the Sterling, and others are located here. An ongoing effort to revitalize this area is progressing partially through the introduction of high-end loft apartments and townhouses, as well as an application to the commonwealth by the city and the Chamber of Commerce for "Main Street" designation.

• Arts District
  One of the anchors of downtown Allentown is its arts district between North 5th and North 6th Streets. The district is home to fine cultural arts and entertainment venues such as the Allentown Art Museum, the Baum School of Art, Allentown Symphony Hall, and most recently the Allentown Arts Park. The Arts District Master Plan was completed in 2004 for the purpose of providing a strategy for the district to grow and further develop its potential.

• ""Jordan Creek""NOTI (North of Tilghman)
  (Jordan Creek through 7th Street east to west north of Tilghman Street to the city line)
  This area is mainly residential. Much of the area has historically been plagued by poverty. Prices of properties here are especially affordable and in recent years this neighborhood has been a magnet for working artists.
• Old Allentown Historic District
  (8th through 12th Streets east to west, and Linden through Liberty Streets south to north)
  The Old Allentown Historic District was established on September 6, 1978 by City Ordinance #12314 and was certified by the Pennsylvania State Historical and Museum Commission on September 26, 1978. The neighborhood was laid out in the original plan for Allentown by order of William Allen in 1762. The area developed as the City grew northward and westward and today contains a mixture of housing styles including Federal, Italianate, Eastlake and Victorian. Old Allentown is also where the Allentown Promise Neighborhood is located. This initiative of the United Way was modeled on the work of Geoffrey Canada and the Harlem Children's Zone. The Allentown Promise Neighborhood takes a systems approach to improving the academic performance and the college and career readiness of the children in its nine block area.

The City, in association with the Old Allentown Preservation Association, is a participant in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Elm Street program. Covering the Old Allentown neighborhood, the Elm Street program's goals are to:

• Revitalize neighborhoods in proximity to the existing downtown by improving the exterior appearance of the buildings and streetscape.
• Formalize a connection between established residential neighborhood areas with downtown revitalization activities.
• Prevent neighborhood decline by developing a plan that includes the establishment of a sustainable community organization that will implement a five year strategy.
• Assist municipalities in preparing and implementing a revitalization strategy for established residential neighborhoods either in the vicinity of a Main Street Program project or in proximity to an existing commercial district.
• The Old Allentown program has an Advisory Committee that executes an annual work plan based on the Old Allentown Neighborhood Improvement Plan, prepared with the assistance of the Bureau of Planning. The program's activities are managed by four committees, Organization, Promotion, Clean Safe and Green, Design, and Neighborhood Restructuring. A program manager assists in the program's implementation.

Efforts of the Old Allentown Preservation Association may be followed on their website: oldallentown.org or on their blog at: oldallentown.blogspot.com

The City plan which outlines the effort can be found on the Allentown City website at: http://www.allentownpa.gov/Portals/0/OpenDocLibraryRoot/Planning_Zoning/OLDALLENTOWNPLAN.PDF

• Old Fairgrounds
  (N. 5th and 6th Streets from Gorden to Tilghman Streets south to north)
  The Old Fairgrounds Historic District was established on July 8, 1981 by City Ordinance #12314 and was certified by the Pennsylvania State Historical and Museum Commission on September 9, 1981. The district takes its name from the use of the area as the Lehigh County Agricultural Society's fairgrounds from 1852-1888. After the Society moved the fairgrounds to its current location at 17th and Chew Streets the land was auctioned off to developers. The area was developed in a mixture of housing styles with Victorian the most common.