Apatity and Depopulation: The (Ir)Relevance of Urban Plans and Required Actions

Abstract

Urban shrinkage is a common problem for the Russian Arctic region where the urbanization which occurred at the beginning of the 20th century was aimed at the strategic development of this region. Since the 1990s, arctic cities in Russia have experienced population decline due to the transition from the planned to the market economy. Apatity, Murmansk Oblast, lost 37% of its population in 1989–2020. Housing stock policy, municipal services and the provision of social infrastructure should have, in theory, adjusted to such population decline but new models of strategic and spatial development need to be found. Both the literature and practice offer new approaches to planning in shrinking cities, whereas strategic and spatial planning documents in most Russian cities either overlook this problem or suggest inconsistent policies. We do not think the latter approach is advantageous as it contains an unrealistic vision of the future of the territory. Research concerning urban shrinkage is just starting to emerge in Russia. This paper aims to stimulate the debate concerning urban planning in shrinking Russian cities. We consider this issue using the example of the city of Apatity. The goal of this research is to propose potential development paths for Apatity, considering the evidence of shrinkage-oriented policies. We studied several documents dedicated to the strategic and spatial development of Apatity, with respect to demographic analysis. The analysis reveals contradictions between the demographic forecasts laid down in the document and the proposed measures. Based on foreign shrinkage-related policies we suggest better strategic directions for the town’s development. We conclude that there are opportunities for population stabilization in Apatity through scientific and tourism development.