The city has a strong corporate sector as the regional center for a vast hinterland of agricultural activity and oil and gas exploration. And Edmonton has a solid manufacturing base, with several major refineries and other businesses. Downtown Edmonton has a healthy downtown core. Its skyline is dominated by corporate office towers, hotels, and apartment buildings. And the downtown core is the focus of entertainment and cultural activities, from theatres to street festivals.
Downtown is still a major employment center.
Canada's urban economy is increasingly dependent on service industries, which often prefer downtown locations. Many of those who work downtown as professionals or support staff live in apartments, condominiums, townhouses, and even expensive single family homes in, or immediately adjacent to, the downtown core. Gentrification, the movement of professionals into central neighborhoods, has been a powerful force in recreating downtown Edmonton. This is true in most Canadian cities as relatively high income professionals choose to live close to the core. As is the case in most of Canada's urban centers, Edmonton's downtown has been the beneficiary of substantial infrastructure investment by all levels of government.