Residents of Makhachkala considered the construction of an ice arena inappropriate.

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Dagestan Head Sergei Melikov reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin supported the initiative to build an ice arena in the republic. Makhachkala residents believe that popular sports in the republic need to be developed, and that maintaining an arena would be very expensive.

"Caucasian Knot" wrote that in early February, Dagestan's head, Sergei Melikov, promised to build a modern ice arena, but Makhachkala residents believe that this money would be better spent on urgent needs.

On March 10, Dagestan's head, Sergei Melikov, who had returned from Moscow, told reporters at the Makhachkala airport that the Russian president had supported the initiative to build an ice arena in the republic during a meeting.

"Hockey is becoming increasingly popular in Dagestan. I reported this to Vladimir Vladimirovich, he listened carefully and gave instructions to look into the issue of building an ice arena," Melikov said.

"Sergei Melikov reported that the meeting with the president took place on March 5." The Kremlin previously reported on the March 6 meeting in three lines, without photos or video. The contrast with last year is striking: back then, such events were synchronized, while today they are out of sync. The Kremlin's entourage operated in the old-fashioned way: any contact with the center is always a resource for an internal audience. The number one task is to reassure local elites and demonstrate "Kremlin support." Protocol signals from above were ignored. The Kremlin provided limited information, while in Makhachkala, they issued the maximum, creating two versions of the same event. This isn't just a technical glitch. It's a misunderstanding of the function: information support for the top official should protect, not create risks. Instead of a unified narrative, we have multiple meanings," the DagestaNet Telegram channel commented on the news.

The Ask Rasul Telegram channel noted that there's no point in writing about the fact that the issue of building an ice palace has already been raised many times. "The land previously allocated for its construction is now occupied by apartment buildings and shopping centers. The project itself, estimated to cost several hundred million rubles, is also missing. Ultimately, the city never received the ice palace, the need for which had been discussed since Vladimir Vasilyev, the head of Dagestan, was appointed. The ice palace was planned for the hippodrome site. According to previously announced plans, the facility was to be operational by the end of 2022. However, the project was never realized," the publication stated.

Previously, the ice palace's design documentation failed state review. The land was seized from the Ministry of Physical Culture and Sports of the Republic of Dagestan, depriving the agency of the right to commission design and estimate documentation in accordance with urban planning requirements. "Against this backdrop, the prospects for residential and commercial development on the hippodrome site are increasingly being discussed. It's entirely possible that new residential areas and retail infrastructure will appear on this site in the future. However, the issue of building an ice palace, previously discussed as a priority project, has practically disappeared from the public agenda," reports "Ask Rasul."

Makhachkala residents, in comments to a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, once again expressed doubt about the feasibility of building an ice palace in Dagestan. The survey is not representative and reflects only the personal opinions of city residents.

Usman believes that building such an expensive facility as an ice palace for hockey in Dagestan is problematic. "The republic can't support football teams, despite the sport having strong traditions, starting with Anzhi. What hockey are we talking about?" he asks.

"The ice palace has been discussed for many years. I know many experts in cities where hockey is well-developed and there are corresponding stadiums. "Their maintenance costs tens of millions of rubles, as it's not just about maintaining the grass at a football stadium. It requires expensive equipment to freeze the ice and maintain it. Who's going to pay for that?" Rustam wonders.

A sports complex built in the center of Makhachkala, on Shamil Avenue, is crumbling, Abdula recalled. "A huge sports complex was built many years ago, and now they can't finish it." "So invest your money here; it will be much cheaper than some virtual ice palace," the Makhachkala resident believes.