noun, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'
outskirts; run-down district
Refers to the fringe of a town or city, often with a connotation of being less prosperous or somewhat seedy. Can be used as a noun or with の to modify another noun.
彼は場末の小さなアパートに住んでいる。
He lives in a small apartment in a run-down district.
その店は街の場末にある。
The shop is on the outskirts of town.
目抜き describes a bustling, central, well-known area, while 場末 describes an obscure, out-of-the-way district on the edge of town.
Compound of 場 (place, location) and 末 (end, tip), literally 'the end of a place'. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the meaning has shifted to refer to the outskirts or less desirable parts of a town.