The elements that comprise Lancaster city's urban lifestyle have been uniquely woven together in a stunning visual package called Lancaster ONE, a tour guide and resource for residents and visitors.

The 168-page color book will be unveiled at a reception tonight and will go on sale Friday at several downtown locations.

Produced by Bloom Creative LLC of Lancaster, Lancaster ONE brings together more than 180 downtown businesses in a photo guide featuring pictures of businesses and their owners. The images were captured during a five-month period by local photographer Jeremy Hess.

Bloom Creative also created a companion tri-fold brochure for display in racks throughout the city.

Lancaster ONE is sponsored by Fulton Bank and LIVE, a group cultivating livability in Lancaster.

Bloom Creative also enlisted the aid of city officials, Downtown Investment District and James Street Improvement District in compiling the directory so as not to duplicate information.

Lancaster ONE includes city maps, a schedule of special events and business resource information. Plans are to update it annually.

"It really helps people to see the breadth and depth of resources available in Lancaster city and allows them to meet the people who make it happen," Tracy Cutler, who co-founded Bloom Creative with Deborah Brandt, said.

"It's very personal in that regard, because you recognize people. You can walk into a store or gallery and see the person you saw in the book. People like to have that connection. This is a very real-time representation of the city."

For the last two years, Bloom Creative has produced a downtown "look book" called fig, a chic advertising booklet distributed quarterly.

It was through that endeavor that Cutler and Brandt saw a need for a more comprehensive product. They started work on Lancaster ONE last June.

"We noticed a communication gap," Cutler said. "The city is changing, and there didn't seem to be any communication to reflect that change. We wanted to do something that would reflect the city's priorities and initiatives, such as the arts."

"Our main purpose with this book is to create unity," Brandt said. "We wanted to bring everything together - baseball, health care, shopping, arts and culture, lodging - and give people the most unified and cohesive approach to downtown possible and in a very attractive manner."

Advertising rates were kept reasonable to open the project to as many businesses as possible, Brandt said.

"Most people were on board once they understood the concept," Cutler said. "It was difficult to try to explain what we wanted to do, but once we got it out there, there was a lot of interest."

Lancaster ONE is a "green" project, utilizing recycled paper and eco-friendly display units.

"It's been a busy couple of months. Just ask our families - they haven't seen much of us," Brandt said. "But it really has been a labor of love for both of us."

Lancaster ONE books will be available for $2 at the following locations beginning Friday:

Carr's, CityFolk, Demuth Museum, Details, DogStar Books, Downtown Investment District, Festoon, Filling's on College Row, The Framing Concept, Here to Timbuktu, Irish Gypsy, Isaac's Downtown, j.a. sharp Custom Jeweler, Patio at Penn Stone, Rachel's Café & Creperie, Radel & Stauffer and Space to Grow.