VLADIKAVKAZ, April 13 (Itar-Tass) — Not a single cultural monument will be damaged in the construction of the Mamison alpine skiing resort in North Ossetia – the largest element of the prospective tourism cluster in the North Caucasus, North Ossetian Cultural Heritage Committee Chairman Eduard Tokayev said.
He noted that plenty of cultural heritage sites were located in the Mamison Gorge, and that was taken into account in the planning of the recreation area. All the construction organizations coordinate their actions with the Committee, he said.
He singled out the Zrugsky Church as a key cultural monument of federal significance. The thousands-years-old Christian site needs reconstruction, “which is demanded by local residents and by acclaimed academicians,” Tokayev said.
The construction of five alpine skiing resorts in the North Caucasus – Matlas in Dagestan, Mamison in North Ossetia, Arkhyz in Karachayevo-Cherkessia, Lagonaki in the Krasnodar territory and Adygeya and Elbrus in Kabardino-Balkaria – is a priority project of the federal authorities. There will be also modern spa and beach clusters.
The alpine skiing tracks will be 898 kilometers long. There will be 179 ropeways and hotels for 89,000 people. The resorts may daily draw 150,500 tourists, while their annual capacity will stand at 5-10 million tourists.
The investments may reach one trillion rubles within ten years, and about 300,000 jobs will be created.