It serves as the head of the Castellanos Department and is the third most populous and significant urban center in the province, following Rosario and the provincial capital, Santa Fe.

[3] The city is considered a "Gateway to the World" due to its industrial connections with most American, European, Far Eastern, and Asia Minor countries.

The first areas to develop, such as the main square "25 de Mayo," still show traces of the earliest houses.

Additionally, older neighborhoods like San Martín (the oldest in the city), 9 de Julio, Sarmiento, Villa Rosas, and Alberdi were among the first to form.

The quadrant bounded by Tucumán Street, Brasil Avenue, Aconcagua Avenue, and Santa Fe Boulevard, which encloses the neighborhoods of Alberdi, Sarmiento, and Villa Rosas, is the only area in the city where the streets run diagonally compared to the rest of the city.

According to a historical account published by the local magazine "El Satélite," this layout dates back to the arrival of the railway, which required construction parallel to the rail lines, resulting in the current street pattern.

This abrupt change is due to Bartolomé Mitre Avenue, which was built to shorten the path to the train stations when the railway arrived in Rafaela in the 19th century.

[5] The National Route 34 has been restructured as it passes through the city, turning it into an avenue with central medians along its entire length, connecting the neighborhoods located to the west.

In 2008 the municipality of Rafaela created the Department of Administration and Participation (Secretaria de Gestión y Participación, SGP) and after that the government started implementing a process of Participatory budgeting,[6] based on the successful case of Porto Alegre.

The club inaugurated the Autódromo Ciudad de Rafaela in 1953, which has hosted competitions such as Turismo Carretera and TC 2000.

In cycling, Luis Vegetti was chosen as the Sportsman of the Year 2010 at the 14th Sports Festival organized by the Municipality of Rafaela.

He earned gold medals in the 750 meters and the Olympic Speed team event at the Pan-American Championship in Cuba.

At the Masters World Cycling Championship in Portugal, he finished fourth in the 750 meters and eighth in the Olympic Speed event.

The city's theater offers a continuous variety of theatrical and musical performances recognized locally, provincially, nationally, and internationally.