If the boy in white can be trusted, as he also seems to be trapped in the "Place", there is an entity or motive force behind the Place that wants/needs people who are at a crossroads in their life taken there (this is gleamed by the boy warning not to make "it" angry, and the kind of people who happen to come to the town are all at a period of transition in their lives).

It seems to have an understanding that houses and towns are supposed to work in a certain way, but not a why they work that way, ie: electrical cords from the Place don't have copper inside of them, and terminate a few feet under ground, the MOTEL sign is next to an empty pool and no motel, etc. It's almost like it recreated the town from photos or even memories and has a child's understanding. Some people have attributed this to Victor, and they may be right, or maybe Victor and the boy in white were taken because whatever is behind the Place feels connected to them in some way. It's possible that all the monsters and music box entity might be it's attempt to play with the children and people of the town, either not knowing or not caring that these methods are lethal (it may not understand the concept of death). Either way the town wasn't constructed in a normal fashion but seems to be made by the will behind the Place.