Problems of Western Siberia''s "unfinished cities" in the 1930s.
This article discusses the causes of the crisis in urban planning in Western Siberia in the 1930s. The author analyzes economic problems of urban development and identifies financial expenses needed to establish new settlements, actual investments made in urban construction, as well as factors that limited the allocation of funds. The conclusion drawn is that, contrary to the concept of socialist resettlement implemented under the first five-year plans (pyatiletki), the actual cost of building new cities was higher than that of city-forming enterprises, and this was one of the main causes of the crisis. Investments in housing and communal services were insufficient for the building of full-fledged cities. The capacity of building infrastructures put in place lagged well behind the actual needs of civil engineering, and the erection of new buildings in completely undeveloped areas only exacerbated the shortage of funds. The study is based on archival sources.