The study of the region about the Galactic Center did not begin in earnest until infrared and radio astronomy reached maturity in the 1960s and 1970s. Now, the tableau is well filled out, but we are left with many fascinating puzzles. The myriad ways in which the central black hole has been interacting with its environment are only just beginning to be appreciated. The future of research in this area will presumably reward us with clearer pictures of how matter migrates inward from the rest of the Galaxy and forms stars, of how the strong magnetic field can alter cloud dynamics and affect star formation and accretion into the central parsec, and how energy release from the black hole as it accretes gas or swallows stars can act back upon the surrounding medium. Fortunately, some events near the black hole happen quickly or often enough that we may be able to  witness them in action (the orbital motions of the nearest stars, for example). However, much of the most interesting work facing researchers will require finding subtle clues to the energetic events that have taken place in the past.