Downtown About Us
About Downtown Evansville
The heart of Evansville is its Downtown, where retail, banking and the seat of government once had their headquarters.
The city today still draws much of its character from its scenic riverfront, which features a beautiful walking & biking path and a terraced amphitheater with a boat docking facility. Residents and tourists alike are drawn in numbers to this park-like area offering endless views of both the Ohio River’s breathtaking vistas and the city’s most imposing structures. An historic World War II battleship and Indiana’s first riverboat casino are docked at opposite ends of the riverfront.
As with most Midwestern cities, growth drew business and people away from the center of the city in the recent past. Malls and other retail centers were developed away from the central part of the city, and ornate multi-story historic buildings were left standing empty and forgotten in Downtown. Financial institutions and government remained in the Downtown area, but they had constructed and occupied more modern structures with greater functionality.
The focal point of Downtown Evansville today is the section of Main Street that was once a serpentine pedestrian walkway devoid of traffic. Though still bearing the designation “The Walkway,” a single lane of traffic has returned to this section of Evansville’s Main Street, where restaurants, entertainment venues, unique shops and retail stores have been created. Art galleries, museums and even college-level class offerings are now featured in Downtown.
The EvansFests division of GAGE focuses on planning exciting and entertaining events in order to lure visitors to Downtown throughout the year – starting with farmers’ markets in the spring, continuing with riverfront concerts and festivals throughout the summer and ending with the traditional holiday parade each November.
And the future promises to be even more exciting! A new multi-purpose 11,000-seat arena and an adjacent 250-room hotel are coming to the Downtown in the near future, promising to give a significant boost and additional impetus to additional development and revitalization in the center of the city.