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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