Rim City: Downtown community change, 1987-1997. An ethnography

This is a study of the cultural and structural changes taking place in a midwestern urban small downtown community over a ten year period of time.;Data sources included interviews with past and present community participants, historical documentation, printed media publications, a survey of visitors/customers patronizing the area, area mapping and photographs.;The findings that emerge from this study show a decline in retail activity, followed by an increase in corporate owned food and drink establishments, focusing on immediate consumption products. Guest/customer activity has shifted to later in the day, attracting young single adults and teenagers seeking primarily to socialize and be entertained. Rental and real-estate prices have sky-rocketed driving out small business owners and buildings are being either greatly modified and/or replaced. The study explores mechanisms driving the socio-economic, and structural changes from an anthropological perspective.