Map of Curitiba, with neighborhoods and boroughs
Bairros (neighborhoods) of Curitiba define the city's geographical divisions. Administrative powers are not delegated to neighborhoods, although neighborhood associations work to improve their communities. Curitiba is divided into 9 regional governments (boroughs) covering the 75 neighborhoods.
Most districts of Curitiba were born of colonial groups formed by families of European immigrants in the second half of the nineteenth century.
The centro (downtown or central business district), was where the city was founded, is the most bustling area, which concentrates most of the financial institutions of Curitiba.
Civic Center (In Portuguese: Centro Cívico) is a neighborhood (first of Brazil) in the municipality of Curitiba, capital of the state of Paraná, where the main government buildings are located. The name means Center of the Citizen or, with a more directed interpretation, center where the subjects related to the citizen are solved. The same was implanted in 1953, with the greater independence, thanks to the creation of a new state.
In the last days of August 2011, the Civic Center was listed as an urban and architectural ensemble. The buildings on the central axis of Avenida Cândido de Abreu are protected, including Plaza 19 de Dezembro, Tiradentes State College, Courts of Justice, Accounts and Jury buildings, the Iguaçu Palace, the Oscar Niemeyer Museum and the Square Our Lady of Salette.
