3. Infrastructure planning in Soviet Union and Eastern Europe 1950-1990
In Soviet literature, community infrastructure was called a services sphere or sector. This
term was actually very wide and covered all types of personal services like retailing,
catering, housing and communal services, education, health care, science and arts, etc.
(Nômmik 1979). An alternative, less used term was social infrastructure.
The discipline dealing with comprehensive economic and infrastructure planning
was called accordingly “raiyonnaya planirovka” and “territoriyalnaya planirovka” (Percik
1971) in Russian and “rajooniplaneerimine” and “territoriaalplaneerimine” in Estonian
(Pragi 1974, 5-12).
3.1. Soviet planning theory: basic principles and particularities
The essence of Soviet planning was quite similar to the regional and land use planning
principles known in the West. The Soviet regional planning was based on the basic concept
of territorial social-economic complexes (TSEC) (Nômmik and Mereste 1984, 200-211,
219-226). The concept of TSEC was very similar with the growth pole theory (Perroux,
1955; Nômmik and Mereste 1984, 204). Very well known was also the Central place
theory of Walter Christaller and Egdar Kant (Nômmik and Mereste 1984, 207).
Theoretically speaking, Soviet planning regime had an even more complex
character, aiming to change of entire settlement system. Since the industrial production and
majority service related economic activities belonged 100% to the state or strictly
controlled cooperative sector, extensive comprehensive planning was possible and highly
required.
Because of strict administrative and planning control, the socialist economy could
coordinate the social-economic processes, including settlement system development, which
was the true element of socialist ideology from its very beginning. Classical socialist model
included all elements of Western urban planning and was based on collective (state)
ownership and strong central government control over land and infrastructure development.
Central government decided location of new developments; local administration just
implemented the order.
Optimisation goes much further in Soviet planning theory and practice: e.g. new
living estates were planned according to jobs: new living blocks were built close to farms