Downtown

Broadway

Downtown Chico was founded in 1860, when John Bidwell requested that the county send a surveyor to lay out the city grid. Up until this time all improvements to the land were on the Bidwell Ranch, north of the Big Chico Creek. The downtown is notable for its numerous restored historic buildings. Downtown is host to a wide range of businesses, architecture and public art, including many murals and art benches. The downtown area is located adjacent to the Chico State campus and the historic South Campus Neighborhood. Downtown offers cafes, restaurants, clothing stores, and a diverse assortment of treasures.

There is a strong sense of community spirit in Chico generally, and people come downtown to gather and participate in our dynamic local culture. There are frequent community events held in various places downtown; in the City Plaza, Children's Playground, on the sidewalks, and even on closed streets. The area is the epicenter of Chico's night life.

Downtown is often the site of many festivals and other fun events, many courtesy of the Downtown Chico Business Association or the Chamber of Commerce. These Chico traditions range from the Taste of Chico and Christmas Preview, to the Friday Night Concert, as well as the Thursday Night Market and annual Slice of Chico.

One of the most prominent events held each Thursday in warm months is the Thursday Night Market for which several streets are closed. There is also the Saturday Farmer's Market which has great produce, crafts, entertainment, and community outreach groups.

Parking Restaurants Cafes Businesses Specialty Banks Bookstores Clothing Stores Hardware Stores Food Markets Novelty Stores Record Stores Smoke Shops/Head Shops/Hookah Other Hotels/Motels Shopping Centers Entertainment Downtown Public Art Downtown Murals Downtown Sculpture Luminary Art Benches and Pedestals Public Facilities Organizations Events Formerly downtown Downtown Buildings Intersections

Parking

Try biking downtown: there is plenty of parking and it's always free!

Parking Downtown has been a thorny issue for some time. But if you're patient and don't mind walking two or three blocks, you can almost always find parking. On downtown streets, vehicles may park for up to two hours between the hours of 7:30am and 6pm, except Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays.

Meter Holidays for 2009 ¹.
January 1 - New Year's Day
January 19 - Martin Luther King's Birthday
February 16 - President's Day
May 25 - Memorial Day
July 4 - Independence Day (Saturday)
September 7 - Labor Day
November 11 - Veteran's Day
November 24 & 25 - Thanksgiving Holidays
December 24 & 25 - Christmas Holidays
December 31 - New Year's Eve

Between the hours of 2am and 7am, vehicles may park for up to 30 minutes. On Broadway St., between 3rd and 5th, parking is not allowed on Thursdays between the times of 5pm and 10pm during the months of April through September. This is necessary for the Thursday Night Market.

Meter Rates

Authorities enforcing parking meter use are very diligent in Chico, so don't think for a moment that you can get away with "one minute more" in a cozy cafe. Parking meter fees go to subsidize a downtown employees transit pass program, maintenance of meters, and servicing the debt on the existing Downtown Parking Structure.

The city is implementing a suite of new parking management strategies, in collaboration with the Downtown Chico Business Association. On July 15, 2008, the City Council directed staff to implement the recommendations in the DCBA's white paper WalkableDowntown.pdf.

Restaurants

See Downtown Restaurants

Cafes

See Cafes for more places to grab some caffeine in Chico.

• Augie's
  

• Cafe Flo
  

• Has Beans
  

• Hideaway Cafe
  

• The Naked Lounge
  

• Peet's
  

• Starbucks

Businesses

Specialty

• Diamond W

• Ellis Art and Engineering Supplies
  

Banks

See Banks.

• Bank of America
  

• Chase Bank (formerly Washington Mutual)
  

• Tri Counties Bank
  

• U.S. Bank
  

• Wachovia Bank
  

• Wells Fargo
  

Bookstores

• The Bookstore

• Lyon Books
  

Clothing Stores

• CRaYZ — coming soon in former location of Island Smoothies and more recently, House of Nature's Own.

• Lulu's Fashion Lounge
  

• Recycle with Style Consignment Boutique
  

Hardware Stores

• Collier Hardware

Food Markets

• Powell's Sweet Shoppe

Novelty Stores

• Tomfoolery

• Headz Up
  

Record Stores

• Melody Records

• Headz Up

Smoke Shops/Head Shops/Hookah

• Arabian Nights (Hookah Bar)
  

• Bidwell Cigar
  

• Headz Up

Other

• Bat Comics
  

• Blaze N J's Glass and Clothes
  

• Bird in Hand
  

• The Dungeon
  

• House of Rice
  

• Nantucket Home
  

• PCI Computers
  

• Wildcat Sportswear

Hotels/Motels

See Hotels & Motels for more places to stay in Chico

• Days Inn
  

• Hotel Diamond
  

• Heritage Inn Express
  

• Thunderbird Lodge
  

• Vagabond Inn

Shopping Centers

See Shopping Centers for more places to shop in Chico.

• Garden Walk
  

• Phoenix Building

Entertainment

Also see Entertainment.

• Blue Room Theatre
  

• Friday Night Concerts
  

• The Pageant Theatre
  

• Yo-Yo Museum

Downtown Public Art

See also Public Art

Downtown Murals

• Astronaut - Fourth and Broadway
  

• Chico Foothills - Stained glass mural on Chico Municipal Center
  

• Compound History-Compound Images - Municipal Center Building, 411 Main Street
  

• Downtown Kaleidoscope by Ramirez, Ringel Park
  

• Giacomo's Vineyard by Scott Teeple, inside Sicilian Cafe 1020 Main
  

• Greek Columns by John Pugh, Taylor Hall First and Salem
  

• Lyon Books has a rather colorful mural
  

• Man and Dog - Fourth and Main Streets (Melody Records/Ital Imports)
  

• Mountain Climber - 100 Block of Main Street
  

• Municipal Center Art Walls by Dayton Claudio Third and Salem
  

• New York Cityscape, Brooklyn Bridge Bagel Works
  

• Painter - East First Street parking lot
  

• 'Peaces' of Chico - At East 1st Street and Vallombrosa Ave
  

• Pony Express by Crane, Chico Midtown Station Fifth and Broadway
  

• Racing Bicyclists by Scott Teeple, Ninth and Main
  

• Robin Hood by Scott Teeple, Campus Bikes Fourth and Main
  

• Salem Street Art Walls by Dayton Claudio Downtown Parking Structure
  

• Beatles by Gregg Payne, Main Street between First and Second
  

• The Bidwell's by Scott Teeple, near Second and Broadway
  

• The Esplanade (mural) - City Plaza
  

• Town Hall 1872 - Visible from Chico City Council Chambers steps.
  

• Trees - 200 Block of West Second Street
  

• Victorian Homes Mid Valley Title and Escrow parking lot Sixth and Main
  

• Windows by Scott Teeple, Collier Hardware First and Broadway

Downtown Sculpture

• Our Hands - Fourth and Wall streets
  

• Dancing Trout Fountain - City Council Chambers on Main Street
  

• Skaters Gate - Humboldt Avenue
  

• Let's Rock - Chico Municipal Center
  

• Performance Machine, O's No. 2 - Chico Municipal Center
  

• Diamond Alley Arches - in Diamond Alley next to the Downtown Parking Structure

Luminary Art Benches and Pedestals

See Luminary Art Benches

Public Facilities

• Chico Municipal Center
  

• City Council Chambers
  

• Downtown Post Office
  

• City Plaza
  

• Children's Playground

Organizations

For more, see Organizations.

• Chico Peace & Justice Center
  

• KZFR Community Radio
  

• The Nature Conservancy
  

• Stonewall Center
  

• Downtown Chico Business Association

Events

• Christmas Preview
  

• Friday Night Concert
  

• Holiday Tree Lighting
  

• Pastels on the Plaza
  

• Saturday Farmer's Market
  

• Slice of Chico
  

• Taste of Chico
  

• Thursday Night Market
  

• Treat Street

Formerly downtown

• Solar Clock
  

• Chico Hotel
  

• Tower Records
  

• Fosters Freeze
  

• Hotel Oaks
  

• Union Hotel
  

• JC Penney
  

• Grilla Bites
  

• Sequoia Hotel
  

• Sherwood Forest
  

• Dino's
  

• Pommes Frites
  

• The Underground

Downtown Buildings

• 101 Salem
  

• 25 Main
  

• 555 Main
  

• Auditorium Hotel Building
  

• Butte County Building
  

• Butte County Offices and Court
  

• Butte Record Printing House
  

• Chico Savings Building
  

• Daniel Breslauer Building
  

• Downtown Post Office
  

• Etta Chiapella Square
  

• Graves Building
  

• I.O.O.F. Annex
  

• I.O.O.F. Building
  

• Junction Building
  

• Leininger Building
  

• Lobdell Brothers Cleaners & Dyers
  

• Masonic Temple
  

• Montgomery Ward Building
  

• Morehead Building
  

• Parker Building
  

• Phoenix Building
  

• Record Building
  

• Silberstein Park Building
  

• St. Augustine of Canterbury Anglican Church
  

• Waterland-Breslauer Building

Intersections

• First and Broadway
  

• First and Main
  

• Second and Broadway
  

• Second and Main
  

• Third and Main
  

• Third and Broadway
  

• Fourth and Main
  

• Fourth and Broadway

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