What is "market square"

n. An open area in a town housing a public market, often on just one day per week; a marketplace.

n. a public marketplace where food and merchandise is sold [syn: open-air market, open-air marketplace]

Market square commonly refers to a town or city location of open air market stalls

Market Square may also refer to:

Pittsburgh's Market Square is a public space located in Downtown Pittsburgh at the intersection of Forbes Avenue (originally named Diamond Way in colonial times) and Market Street. The square was home to the first courthouse, first jail (both in 1795) and the first newspaper (1786) west of the Atlantic Plain, the Pittsburgh Gazette. A public/private modernization in the late 2000s has re-established the square as a social and cultural hub. A great number of restaurants, ranging from fast casual to fine dining, cafes and retailers occupy ground level buildings immediately facing the square, while housing units and offices occupy upper levels.

Rynok Square is a central square of the city of Lviv, Ukraine. It was planned in the second half of the 14th century, following granting city rights by King Casimir III the Great of Poland, who incorporated Red Ruthenia into the Kingdom of Poland in 1349. The king ordered Lviv to be moved more to the south, where a new city was built to the plan of a traditional European settlement: a central square surrounded by living quarters and fortifications. Old, Ruthenian Lviv had become a suburb of the new Polish city.

The square is rectangular in shape, with measurements of 142 metres by 129 metres and with two streets radiating out of every corner. In the middle there was a row of houses, with its southern wall made by the Town Hall. However, when in 1825 the tower of the Town Hall burned, all adjacent houses were demolished and a new hall, with a 65-metre tower, was built in 1835 by architects J. Markl and F. Trescher.

Around the square, there are 44 tenement houses, which represent several architectural styles, from Renaissance to Modernism. In the four corners, there are fountains—wells from 1793, probably designed by Hartman Witwer. The sculptures represent four Greek mythological figures: Neptune, Diana, Amphitrite and Adonis. In front of the Town Hall, there was a pillory. In 1998 the Market Place, together with the historic city center of Lviv, was recognised as a UNESCO world heritage site.

Market Square is a three-block outdoor plaza lined with shops, and restaurants in downtown San Antonio, Texas. Market Square is the largest Mexican market in the United States. The "El Mercado" section has 32 specialty shops and the "Farmer's Market Plaza" section has 80. "Mi Tierra Cafe Y Panaderia" and "La Margarita Mexican Restaurant & Oyster Bar" are the major eateries, but snack and specialty foods are available at other shops. Market Square is the site of Cinco de Mayo in central San Antonio and many other fiestas throughout the year.

The "El Mercado" building was built as a Works Progress Administration project during 1938-1939 after the existing municipal market house (known as the Giles building) was torn down. The new building was originally named the "Municipal Truck Market", but locals commonly called it the "Farmer's Market", as farmer's sold their produce straight from their trucks inside the open air building. In 1975, the last produce was sold there, and the market house underwent renovation to convert it into an enclosed air-conditioned mercado.

Market Square is a shopping center located in Lake Forest, Illinois, United States, in the Chicago metropolitan area. Opened in 1916, it is notable as one of the earliest planned shopping centers, and is often cited as the first planned shopping center in the United States.

Although Country Club Plaza (1923) in Kansas City, Missouri is generally credited as the first regional shopping center designed to accommodate shoppers arriving by automobile, Market Square was built within an already defined central retail district, replacing prior development. Lake Forest resident Arthur T. Aldis championed the notion of replacing the dilapidated business district of the town, and engaged architect Howard Van Doren Shaw.

In Illinois, the first major center to be developed after Market Square was Spanish Court (1928).

Market Square in Ivano-Frankivsk is called Ploshcha Rynok and is historically the central square of the city. It is the oldest square and traces its history to the city's establishment. The main feature of the square is the former city hall, Ratusha, which today serves as the building of the Museum of regional studies.

Market Square in Miamisburg, Ohio is a historic district that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. A date of significance for the location is 1850. The district includes Second Empire, Italianate, and Queen Anne in 50 contributing buildings.

Market Square is a furniture showroom complex in High Point, North Carolina, owned by International Market Centers which is the largest building in North Carolina on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), and the sixth largest in the United States. Known also as Tomlinson Chair Manufacturing Company Complex, it was listed on the NRHP under that name. The former manufacturing complex includes the oldest factory building in the city, and its renovation has been credited with making High Point a successful furniture exhibition center. A 16-story addition in 1990 is one of the city's tallest buildings.

Market Square is one of the oldest squares in Lutsk, Ukraine, dating back to the 14th century. The square was developed after Lutsk received Magdeburg Rights. Over the years, Market Square has been the commercial, social and political center of the city. Previously, the Square was surrounded by administrative buildings and hosted multiple major public events. The market held in Market Square was also the main trade center for the city.

The Square has been destroyed by fire several times during its history. After the Town Hall burned down in the 18th century, new buildings reduced the space for the market, but it still remained the trade center of Lutsk until World War II. Currently, Market Square is a historical landmark surrounded by old townhouses and churches.