Arctic Yearbook 2014 | Page 366

366 Arctic Yearbook 2014 historically been based on both tourism and the mining industry. In Russia the town is probably as well known for its winter sports activities as it is for mining. ‘Proletarian tourism’ in Kirovsk began in 1932 (Kabysh 2010). According to Denisov (personal communication, June 8, 2012), the former leader of the City Committee of the Communist Party of Kirovsk, Vasilii Ivanovich Kirov had already supported the growth of tourism in the Soviet era because the main industry was wealthy and its stability was guaranteed by state procurement orders. Hence, tourism became part of the local culture and was the second most important branch of the local economy during the Soviet era (Denisov, personal communication, June 8, 2012). Therefore, the historical path partly explains the supportive attitude towards the tourist industry in today’s planned development. In 2012, when the town-constituting enterprise was viewed as stable, the mayor of Kirovsk, Denisov (personal communication, June 8, 2012), noted that the strategic development field for the future of t