Social capital, local businesses, and amenities in U.S. rural prairie communities

This research broadens the conceptualization of amenities for rural communities to include the full range considered for metropolitan areas and examine how communities' social climate is associated with amenities. We specifically focus on community social capital as it affects the strategies and actions of local small businesses and contend that community social capital has the potential to influence business operators to work for amenity development. Using interview data drawn from 1212 business owners in 17 rural prairie towns and observational data of amenities in those communities, we empirically test the relationship of social capital to community amenities. We find that, with population held constant, social capital is positively related to all amenities except the downtown amenities. The support business provide to the community is positively related to outdoor recreational and indoor recreation, entertainment, and cultural amenities. Findings provide insight into factors related to amenity development, and how these factors could be directed or handled by community leaders.