The system of central (reference) settlements as a management tool: theoretical and practical aspects

The article considers the theory of central places as a methodological basis for creating a system of reference settlement. The practical significance and relevance of it is largely determined by the purpose of creating a system of central places in conditions of a limited (minimal) number of central places to ensure that all settlements of the corresponding territory are provided with the necessary services. Using the example of Germany, the authors show how the concept of central places is widely used in spatial organization, spatial development and territorial planning, in the organization of the system of public power and the provision of services. The authors analyze the current federal agenda and the regional practice of the Russian regions identification of reference settlements (on the example of the Stavropol Territory). The authors determine the nature and area of distribution of the benefits provided; the number of the population acting as a potential consumer of the benefits provided; the intensity of the impact on migration processes (primarily pendulum migration) and the labor market; the level of infrastructural development (including industrial, transport, social infrastructure); distance to other central places. The approbation of the proposed approach is presented on the example of the Kochubeyevsky municipal district of the Stavropol Territory. The authors consider fundamentally important taking into account that the system of third-level reference settlements should be significantly more extensive.