Philadelphia, where the past merges with the future, is one of the country's premier cities. From America's most historic square mile to the cutting edge medical research centers at the University of Pennsylvania, Temple University , Fox Chase Cancer Center, Wistar Institute and Monell Chemical Senses Center, to the new Pennsylvania Conventional Center to five-star restaurants and first rate orchestra, ballet and art museums, Philadelphia is a world-class city with something to offer everyone.

Philadelphia also offers a more affordable lifestyle than most major United States cities. According to the U.S. League of Savings Institutions, the median cost of new or existing housing is well below the national average. During the past ten years, Philadelphia has opened a tremendous number of reasonably priced restaurants and cafes that have been well received. Philadelphia is also distinguished as the safest of the nation's ten largest cities, according to a recent publication of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

In addition, the physical environment in Center City is exceptional. Like Boston, Philadelphia has superb examples of eighteenth century American commercial and residential architecture, as well outstanding buildings from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These architectural gems sit directly adjacent to modern office buildings in Center City. A typical Philadelphia business executive can, for example, emerge from his office along the Broad-Market Street office corridor, walk a few short blocks to one of the narrow eighteenth century cross streets, and dine in a renovated building that dates from the early 1800's. The picturesque mixture of old and new enhances the ambiance of Center City and allows it to retain its charm. Many old buildings have been officially designated historic landmarks and are being renovated as part of major development schemes.

Philadelphia, the Birthplace of American Rights, is the home of Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States were written as well as the Liberty Bell, an international symbol of liberty and freedom. Also known as the Cradle of Liberty, Philadelphia was at the heart of the American Revolution and the founding of our country and was the sight of the first and second Continental Congress.

Philadelphia is the national leader in historic restoration. Betsy Ross House, where the first American flag was made is located here, as is Carpenters' Hall, meeting place of the First Continental Congress. City Tavern was a meeting place for the delegates to the Continental Congress. The oldest residential street in America, Elfreth's Alley, is a Philadelphia landmark dating back to 1728. Society Hill, a residential district south of Independence Hall, features the restoration of many 18th and 19th century homes.

While Philadelphians have convenient access to New York City and its cultural smorgasbord, Philadelphia boasts a rich offering of cultural attractions and leisure activities of its own: the world-renowned Philadelphia Orchestra, professional theater, dance, opera and ballet companies, a host of museums, colleges and universities offering enrichment opportunities as well as historic monuments and sight-seeing activities.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art, a massive Greco-Roman structure at the head of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, is one of the largest museums in the United States and houses what is acknowledged to be one of the finest collections of early Italian and American art and decorative arts, as well as a superb collection of French and American Impressionists. The Rodin Museum has one of the largest collections of Rodin sculptures, books and papers outside of Europe. The Franklin Institute, along with the Air and Space Museum, is a world-renowned scientific institution with rotating and permanent exhibitions, while the Academy of Natural Sciences, adjacent to the Franklin Institute, is a museum and educational center focusing on the natural sciences. Art institutions abound in Philadelphia, including the celebrated Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts established in 1805, which is the nation's oldest art school and houses more then 3,500 works of art. One of the country's most famous schools of music, the Curtis Institute, is located on Rittenhouse Square. This private institution includes Leonard Bernstein and Anna Moffo among its noted graduates. The Opera Company of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Orchestra, call the Academy of Music, built in 1853, their home.

Philadelphia offers a variety of leisure activities as well as a full complement of professional sports teams, bicycle and running trails in the country's largest city park, discotheques, and exceptional restaurants. Weekend escapes are convenient to the New Jersey seashore and the Pocono Mountains, both of which are less than two hours by car.

Philadelphia is one of only two cities in the U.S.A. where all four major league sports teams play within the city limits. The Renovated Veteran's Stadium is Home of the Phillies, Eagles, Army-Navy Game and Temple Football. The Flyers and Sixers play in the New CoreStates Center. Other major sports facilities include the Palestra, Franklin Filed and E.I. DuPont Pavilion. The region has over 69 colleges and universities playing intercollegiate sports. Philadelphia is host the Penn Relays, Corestates Bike Race, Philadelphia Distance Run and Big 5 Basketball.

The traditional economic base of the region was once heavy manufacturing. Concurrent with national trends, the regional economy has now shifted toward a skilled/service oriented base. Approximately 33 percent of the region's 2.1 + million work force is now employed in the service industries, as contrasted with approximately 15 percent employed in manufacturing. Furthermore, another 22 percent of the region's work force is employed in the wholesale and retail trades, while only 14 percent is employed by government. While only the strongest of manufacturing companies remain in the region, economic leadership is now shared with companies in health care, information processing, pharmaceutical, education, banking, insurance, real estate and legal service industries.

Retail Sales in Philadelphia Metropolitan Area are currently estimated to exceed $40 billion annually. The Philadelphia area ranked fourth nationally behind Los Angeles, Chicago and New York in total retail sales for 1992, the last year for which statistics are currently available. Retail sales in this metropolitan area have increased at a compound annual rate of 3.7 percent since 1987.

Since 1990 many new shopping facilities have opened including The Shops at Liberty Place, Shops at the Bellvue, Boyds and Market Place East. Other retail areas include Jewelers' Row, Antique Row, The Gallery on Market Street East and Franklin Mills. Walnut Street, Rittenhouse Square and Manayunk provide diversified boutique shops.

The explosion of building in the 1980's centered on the west side of Market Street in Center City Philadelphia. This building included One Liberty Place, which broke the height barrier, Liberty II, the Cigna Tower, The Bell Atlantic Tower, Two Logan Square and Commerce Square. Renovation and modernization of exiting center city office buildings followed this building explosion.

Banking and insurance companies are the foundations of Philadelphia's financial sector. Philadelphia serves as the money center for the mid-Atlantic United States, and is the home of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. The City has 12 major commercial banks with full-service international departments and assets of over $1 billion each. These commercial banks include Mellon Bank Corporation, CoreStates and Provident National Bank.

Greater Philadelphia has a growing concentration of service companies in the legal, accounting, high-technology and health care industries.

Accounting and Law

All "Big Six" international accounting firms have major Philadelphia offices. In addition, Philadelphia legal receipts are the fifth highest in the United States. Philadelphia is the headquarters of 12 of the top 250 law firms in the nation. Furthermore, the area has many private law firms which represent the full spectrum of specialty practices, as well as four law schools to continually replenish the supply of young legal talent.

Philadelphia is rapidly emerging as a leader in the developing field of information science. Philadelphia and its suburban counties, particularly those along the nearby Route 202 Corridor, provide the location for a growing number of high-technology firms and their headquarters. In 1990, there were 175,000 employees working in high-technology jobs. This figure is comparable to the more popularly acknowledged technology centers such as Boston and Dallas.

Greater Philadelphia is the largest and most concentrated health care market in the United States. The health care industry includes 137 hospitals, over 100 research and development facilities, 77 manufacturers of medical, surgical and dental instruments and supplies, and 44 pharmaceutical and biological product manufacturers. The City's six medical and two dental schools have graduated ten percent of the nation's physicians and seven percent of the nation's dentists. The City also has a renowned school of veterinary medicine, seven nursing schools, six epidemiology program and two world-class centers for eye surgery and research. The health care industry provides employment for nearly 10% of the region's work force.

Greater Philadelphia has a highly developed transportation system with a commuter rail network, interconnecting bus routes, rapid transit lines and local bus routes making intercity movement convenient. Philadelphia's location in the Northeastern corridor of the nation, combined with its sophisticated system of train, highway, water and air transport, makes it an ideal location within which to operate a business. Access to New York City is easy - the City is 99 miles by car, 70 minutes by train with a choice of 35 trains every weekday. Travel to other major cities such as Washington, D.C., Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco is very convenient as well. Access to the train station and the airport is also easy. A high-speed rail line connects the airport to the downtown area in approximately 20 minutes.