Surrounding neighbourhoods include Wîhkwêntôwin to the west, Queen Mary Park, Central McDougall and McCauley to the north, Boyle Street and Riverdale to the east, and Rossdale to the south.

[7][8] The Edmonton Oilers's home arena, Rogers Place, is located in the north central part of downtown where it anchors the Ice District mixed-used development for sports and entertainment.

[9] The arts district is in the eastern part of the core with many award winning institutions like the Francis Winspear Centre for Music (home of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra) and the Citadel Theatre.

Edmonton City Hall is also located here with all these buildings facing onto Sir Winston Churchill Square.

The most notable feature of this part of downtown is the Alberta Legislature Building and its surrounding parks, fountains, and gardens.

The Federal Building is undergoing a $356 million renovation due to be completed in 2015 for provincial government offices and a new underground parking structure.

Jasper Avenue is home to many of Edmonton's oldest heritage buildings (for example the Hotel Macdonald) and some of Edmonton's tallest office towers, including Canadian Western Bank Place and Rice Howard Place; however, the presence of the former limits that of the latter, and many tall buildings are found just off Jasper where land is easier to obtain.

Rice Howard Way's southern edge (100A Street at Jasper Avenue) has an entrance to the Central LRT Station.

During the first decade of the 20th century, the Hudson's Bay Company began selling its land holdings in this area, and businesses were quick to move in.

[14] In 1970s and 1980s, the Gay Alliance Toward Equality (GATE) had its location on 104th Street where they provided services to the local community and acted in a political advocacy role.

In recent years, the area has seen a revival, with new lofts and condos being constructed or proposed, along with many designer shops.

[14] The area also included Canada's first urban format Sobey's Fresh Market, flanking the curved Birks building as the entrance to 104 Street at Jasper Avenue, serving the residential population until its closure in 2014.

It is a $2.5 billion mixed-use sports and entertainment district being developed on 10 hectares (25 acres; 120,000 sq yd) of land in Downtown.

[29] This includes Stantec Tower,[29][30] and the JW Marriott Edmonton Ice District & Residences expected to open in 2018.

[29][31] Other projects include; A public plaza, future residences, and retail attractions, such as a Rexall pharmacy, Cineplex UltraAVX & VIP Cinemas, and grocery shopping centres.

MacEwan University also operates the Alberta College Campus located near the southern edge of the downtown core on McDonald Drive.

Today, the building has a new lease on life, and is the home of the Edmonton Public School Board Archives and Museum.

The Edmonton Pedway is a pedestrian skywalk system that consists of bridges and tunnels connecting various buildings and LRT stations in the downtown area.

A heritage streetcar line operates during the summer months from Jasper Avenue to Old Strathcona over the High Level Bridge.