downtown anchorage is a neighborhood in the u.s. city of anchorage, alaska. considered the central business district of anchorage, downtown has many office buildings, cultural points of interest, shopping areas, as well as dining and nightlife attractions. today's downtown was the original site of the anchorage land auction in 1915, which gave rise to today's present-day grid street pattern. the actual original townsite was a tent city located off the banks of ship creek, at present-day government hill.