 Despite its image as a port and industrial city , Haifa is the cultural hub of northern Israel . During the 1950s , mayor Abba <unk> made a special effort to encourage authors and poets to move to the city , and founded the Haifa Theatre , a repertory theater , the first municipal theater founded in the country . The principal Arabic theater <unk> the northern Arab population is the al @-@ <unk> Theater . Other theaters in the city include the <unk> Centre for the Performing Arts and the <unk> Art and Culture Center . The Congress Center hosts exhibitions , concerts and special events . 
