Known as an off-campus spot for artistic and hipster types, Boheme Bistro, 2900 West St., will close its doors on Dec. 17.

“I’ve owned it for 10 years, and now I need to put myself into other pursuits,” said owner Pete Sherman, associate professor of aerospace engineering and statistics. “No one is going to live forever.”

The venue has been something of a fixture of the Ames and ISU community and was created with the intent of being more than just a candlelit bar with art on the walls.

“Boheme was started in 1998 in an effort to offer a social venue that might contribute in a novel and positive manner to interactions among people of all ages and social, economic, racial and cultural strata,” Sherman said on the Boheme’s Web site.

The venue is not closing due to financial hardship – Sherman simply wants to move on from it.

“I started it for specific reasons, and I need to continue to pursue those reasons in other ways,” Sherman said.

For the last several months Sherman had been trying to sell the Boheme, asking for $50,000. A few potential buyers expressed interest, but, ultimately, no deal was made.

Payam Imani, senior in apparel merchandising, design and production and frequent patron of Boheme, said its atmosphere would be greatly missed in the Ames entertainment scene.

“The Boheme always has DJs that don’t spin Top 40 music. They play really interesting international and electronic stuff, and the DJ constantly gives you fresh music,” Imani said.

Music, according to the Boheme’s philosophy, is how the establishment has encouraged diversity during its lifetime.

Troy Cairo, junior in art and design, benefited from the Boheme’s eclectic taste in music while he performed as a DJ under the name Kynky Kyro.

“The crowd is really open-minded and willing to listen to anything you want to play,” Cairo said.

Cairo said he believed the Boheme offered an outlet for aspiring DJs playing underground music from around the world, and he is unsure how he will adapt to the loss of the venue.

“I am still trying to get jobs spinning, but none of the other bars in Ames like the music I like to play,” Cairo said. “It’s hard to keep people open to music that they’ve never heard here.”

The Boheme also built its reputation by hosting a great deal of events. Years ago, Boheme hosted Vanessa Taylor’s drag shows, attracting sellout crowds. Poetry slams and open mic nights gave local artists a forum for their work. And the weekly Thursday Vinyl Club Nights and World Beat Nights showcased music from around the world.

“Thursdays at the Boheme was a weekly event. Most of the crowd would get dressed up in really ridiculous outfits on that one night during the week when all the magic was happening,” Imani said.