Inter-Municipal Cooperation as a Tool for the Development of Metropolitan Areas (the Case of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region)

This paper considers the theoretical and methodological aspects of using inter-municipal cooperation as a tool for metropolitan area development. The main purpose of this work is to assess the state and prospects for the development of inter-municipal cooperation within the framework of the development of the St. Petersburg agglomeration. The paper considers the concepts and research approaches in defining the phenomenon оf agglomeration, as well as analyzes foreign and domestic experience in managing their development. The study of the theoretical and methodological foundations of the inter-municipal cooperation implementation in the development of agglomerations is presented. The criteria when inter-municipal cooperation can be an effective tool in the development of agglomerations are defined and agreed in the expert survey. Further, the possibilities of applying inter-municipal cooperation were considered on the example of the St. Petersburg agglomeration. Using the cluster analysis, the municipalities of the St. Petersburg agglomeration were divided into homogeneous groups according to a number of indicators that characterize the level of their socio-economic development. Based on the results obtained and their interpretation, recommendations were developed for the use of inter-municipal cooperation as a tool for the development of agglomerations.