This Center City District/Central Philadelphia Development Corporation report highlights Philadelphia’s signs of recovery and examines the serious challenges that must be addressed. Distilling the most recent data available from city, state, and national agencies; local organizations and businesses; and CCD’s own in-depth research and analysis, this comprehensive 72-page report makes policy recommendations for the next mayoral administration on how Philadelphia can fully recover from the last three years of disruption and catch up with peer cities in the long-term to grow jobs and create opportunity for all. To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
307,300 jobs
In Greater Center City
66% of nonresident workers have returned downtown as of February 2023
40.5 million sf
of office space
40+ outdated office and industrial buildings
converted to hotel and residential use in the last 25 years
109,000 students
enrolled in higher education institutions near
Center City
203,484 residents
in Greater Center City
71% of downtown residents
25 years old or over has a bachelor’s degree.
552,000
visitors to the Pennsylvania Convention Center in 2022
2.87 million
occupied hotel room nights in 2022.
8.9 million
visitors to Dilworth Park
4th most walkable city
in the U.S.
Center City Philadelphia is the region’s largest employment center. With 254,100 jobs from Vine Street to Pine Street, and 307,300 from Girard Avenue to Tasker Street, it is among the country’s top 10 densest job centers blended with the nation’s third largest downtown residential population. Offices, hotels, universities, health-care institutions and residential towers support a vibrant retail and restaurant scene. Adjacent neighborhoods host smaller nodes of employment with several thriving commercial corridors. All of these assets position Center City well for full recovery.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
Center City’s 40 million square feet of office space provide the densest containers of the most diverse jobs, from high-wage and high-skilled, to moderate wage and entry-level jobs in building services, construction, mechanical systems, janitorial and security. The more higher-skilled workers return to offices more days per week, the more job opportunities for other workers—both within office buildings and in the retail and service establishments supported by office workers.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
Health care and higher education provide the largest share of Philadelphia’s jobs. This “eds and meds” sector attracts more than 100,000 college students into the downtown and adjacent areas, provides a pipeline of talent for employers, draws patients and research dollars to the city while supporting technological and medical innovation, life science research and the growth of new industries.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
Greater Center City has been the fastest growing area of Philadelphia for the last two decades with the population increasing by 39% between 2000 and 2020 to 203,500 residents. Developments in the last three years have capitalized on that trend with 48% of all new Philadelphia housing units in 2022 located downtown and another 27% in the immediately adjacent neighborhoods. Major residential projects completed last year include Riverwalk North at 60 North 23rd Street, One Cathedral Square at 1701 Race Street, and Arthaus at 315 South Broad Street.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
Retail and restaurants are among the most visible signs of the resilience of Center City Philadelphia, benefiting from three decades of diversification from a 9-to-5 office monoculture into a 24-hour downtown animated by tourists, visitors, residents and workers. Rebounding from 2020, more stores and restaurants opened than closed in both 2021 and 2022.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
Sustained investment in the hospitality industry since the early 1990s, including the Pennsylvania Convention Center, tourism destinations around Independence National Historical Park and the expansion of professional marketing organizations have enabled the city to build upon its unique role in American history and its abundance of cultural institutions, expand the number of hotel rooms and support the growth of employment opportunities for Philadelphia residents.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
Greater Center City is home to 210 arts and cultural institutions. Among major American cities, it offers one of the highest downtown concentrations of museums, theaters, libraries and performing arts companies that provide amenities for Center City and regional residents, draw visitors from around the world and spur economic activity for restaurants, retail, and hotels.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
Center City is served by five trolley routes, two subway lines, 29 bus routes, 14 regional rail lines and two interstate highways connecting to neighborhoods across the city and to suburban communities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. The William H. Gray III 30th Street Station is served by 11 Amtrak lines, connecting Philadelphia with business and leisure travelers from the East Coast to the Midwest.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.
In 2021 and 2022, with strong support from the business community, and in partnership with public agencies, CCD significantly ramped up on-street public safety efforts: adding a bicycle patrol operating seven days a week, expanding homeless outreach, and developing a routine process of coordination between public safety staff of all city, state and federal law enforcement agencies, transit agencies, and private security in office buildings and businesses.
To learn more, download the full report- State of Center City 2023.