The transformation of place: Boom, bust, and adjustment in Rifle, Colorado
Rogers, Jefferson Sanford
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/20061
Description
Title
The transformation of place: Boom, bust, and adjustment in Rifle, Colorado
Author(s)
Rogers, Jefferson Sanford
Issue Date
1995
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Jakle, John A.
Department of Study
Geography
Discipline
Geography
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
History, United States
Geography
Sociology, Social Structure and Development
Language
eng
Abstract
Between 1973 and 1983, dozens of nonmetropolitan towns and counties in the Rocky Mountain West experienced rapid growth due to the development of energy resources and the construction of power generation facilities. After 1983, however, many of these energy-impacted communities went bust as energy producers abandoned, downsized, or completed their respective projects. Although the effects of the energy boom in the region have been studied extensively by scholars, the processes and impacts associated with the energy bust have not been fully examined. This study presents the case history of Rifle, Colorado, a town which was severely impacted by the rapid growth and sudden collapse of the oil shale industry during the early 1980s. The focus of this study is on Rifle's post-boom functional transformations and the organized efforts of its residents to restructure the local economy through a tourism-related project. A model, based on Allan Pred's theory of place, is introduced and utilized for a detailed sequential analysis of Rifle's transformation process. It is argued that this transformation of place is an agency-driven, proactive process.
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