The issue of who should be subsidized in the first place has been really on the agenda because neither uniform model nor lottery-based support could have been effective in the case of single-industry towns. It has been decided, thus, that 75 settlements from the “red zone” would get a priority access to budgetary funds. Another question eventually arose: for what tasks and in what manner the funds should be spent. There have been three options – support selected production facilities, and investment projects, or switch to financing the development of urban infrastructure. Our institute recommended that infrastructure should be mostly supported, especially transport infrastructure in single-industry towns which are satellites of large industrial centers. This would ensure a better employment of the population in the first place. Yet, the logic of bureaucratic management pushes towards the first two options.
Source: On-line media “Expert Online”, November 14th, 2014
