Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
downtown
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Highlights of the audio tour include: • Golden Heart Plaza: Walk across the foot bridge behind Immaculate Conception Church to the south side of the Chena River, and you’re at Golden Heart Plaza, a central plaza decorated with flowers in the summertime. It’s also the summer home of the Downtown Market every Monday night. In the winter, the frozen Chena River is used for cross country skiing, sled dog races and snowmachining. • One block south of the river is Second Avenue, the former entertainment hub of Fairbanks. The Mecca bar is one holdover from the string of bars that once lined this street. The Co-Op Plaza, a former movie theater, now holds a diner, coffee shop and several craft shops. Fourth Avenue, two blocks further south, was Fairbanks’ red light district into the 1950s. • Several of Fairbanks’ grandest structures are civic buildings along Cushman Street. Several have been re-purposed throughout the years. City Hall (at Ninth Avenue and Cushman Street) is the former Main School, while the old City Hall (Fifth and Cushman) now houses the Fairbanks Community Museum. The old courthouse (Second and Cushman) is a commercial building. • Clay Street Cemetery: Fairbanks’ first cemetery is located just outside downtown on the eastern edge of Fifth
ice museum
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Downtown Fairbanks is a mix of shopping experiences, from gift and jewelry stores to unique antique shops and a plethora of art galleries. Avenue. More than 2,000 Alaskans were buried there between 1903 and 1978. • The Daily-News Miner (on north side of the Cushman Street bridge), first founded as the Daily Miner in 1903, publishes a daily newspaper as well as this guide. Be sure to smile for the Arctic Cam, a popular webcam that looks over the parking lot toward the Big I bar and the Chena River. • Across Cushman Street is Immaculate Conception Church, Fairbanks’ first Catholic Church. Originally built in 1904, it was moved from the south side of the river in 1911.
Go shopping and get hungry
Downtown Fairbanks is a mix of shopping experiences, from gift and jewelry stores to unique antique shops and a plethora of art galleries. Second and Third avenues offer ample stores to peruse through for that perfect item to take home, and several clothing and fur stores also make downtown home.
work and, for the adventurous, the chance to go down an ice slide that has been expanded compared to those of previous years, according to Ice Alaska’s Dick Brickley. Admission to one of the Ice Alaska shows is $15 for adults, $14 for senior citizens and
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Want to Have Some Fun? Watch baseball under the midnight sun or watch games live online! www.goldpanners.com/ Twitter @goldpanners
When you’re there, don’t forget to eat. Several small sandwich and coffee shops call downtown home as well as the more traditional restaurant with full service waitstaff. When it comes to clothing, Big Ray’s offers everything you need to make you feel like you actually live here. From Xtratuffs to steeltoed boots, Big Ray’s is the place to go. The shop is full of outdoors gear as well as more fashionable gear and clothing needed for the sometimes fickle Fairbanks weather. Frank’s Menswear offers you a more upscale clothing choice if you’re looking to go out on the town. For Alaska knick-knacks to bring home to family and friends, downtown Fairbanks has shops on almost every street. The Fudge Pot serves soup, sandwiches and espresso and trinkets. Also, as the name implies, lots of fudge. Two Street Station and Soapy Smith’s are great spots for a latte, lunch or a cold beverage. If Only ... A Fine Store, offers up fine goods, clever gift ideas and local art. It’s a great place to find a gift for anyone, from babies to adults. You can’t miss the store’s greeter, Martha, who stands on the sidewalk ushering visitors in regardless of whether it’s raining or shining. Arctic Travelers Gift Shop also offers an equally wide range of products. There are plenty of other shops in downtown. Check out the Downtown Association of Fairbanks’ website at www. downtownfairbanks.com for a more thorough list of downtown businesses.
military personnel and $10 for children age 6 through 17. If you want to stay cool in Fairbanks this summer, visit the Fairbanks Ice Museum.
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Zimmerman has been a photographer for more than 40 years and has traveled the globe capturing images of the Aurora Borealis. The cost of the show is $10. The hourly shows from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. are produced by Ice Alaska. The show features a film on the World Ice Art Championships, an ice carving demonstration you can watch from the comfort of your seats, the opportunity to view ice sculptures and see an ice carver at
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VISITORS GUIDE