All residents of the city know the VK Kostevich Palace of Culture. The founder of the Palace of Culture is Vladislav Kazimirovich Kostevich, director of the main city-forming enterprise Irbit Motorcycle Plant. Vladislav Kazimirovich considered the organization of the cultural and leisure life of people to be his blood business, the same as the production of motorcycles. Having worked at the plant, by that time, for 14 years, he decided that the plant workers and their families urgently needed a full-fledged center of culture. After consulting with members of the party bureau, heads of shops, we agreed to accelerate the construction of the Palace of Culture on our own. In 1965 the regional government fully financed the construction.
The Palace building was commissioned in October 1965. In December, a 262-seat cinema was opened with a schedule of seven screenings a day. A library appeared with additional areas for a reading room and a sports hall. For the 25th anniversary of the Irbit Motorcycle Plant, in October 1966, a large concert hall with 700 seats with a balcony was opened. The palace got its own name — «Contemporary». It was awarded following the results of the competition for the best name for the Palace of Culture, which was held among the factory workers. In 1991, in memory of the outstanding leader, the Palace officially received a new name — the Palace of Culture named after Vladislav Kazemirovich Kostevich. And his glorious deeds are immortalized by a memorial plaque.
Vladislav Kostevich, a graduate of the Altai Institute of Agricultural Engineering, came to Irbit for assignment in August 1951. Few on the motorcycle knew then, and even more so now that behind him was the Great Patriotic War — a young specialist about himself, later — the head of different levels did not like to talk, he practically did not wear awards even on holidays.
Meanwhile, Vladislav hails from the village of Burkhun, Tulunsky district, Irkutsk region, from 1940 to 1942 he studied at the Irbit school of military technicians, the Chernigov military engineering school. He served in the 94th Infantry Division of the Trans-Baikal Front. And he graduated from military service in 1946 as an assistant platoon commander of the 8th Guards Airborne Brigade of the First Airborne Army.
The Kostevich family (spouse Elena, a graduate of the Irkutsk Agricultural Institute, sons — four-year-old Seryozha and two-year-old Vitya) were placed in a barrack-type hostel. Both worked at the Irbit motorcycle plant. A year later, Vladislav Kazimirovich was appointed deputy chief technologist, and three more later — chief technologist, in 1958 — chief engineer, and since June 1965 — director of a motorcycle plant. Vladislav Kazimirovich took care not only of production, but also of people.
Kostevich thought about himself last. He died young at the age of 48. On December 25, 2008, the Duma decided to confer the title of «Honorary Citizen of the city of Irbit» to Vladislav Kazimirovich Kostevich. With a minute of silence, those present honored the memory of the director of a motorcycle plant who passed away thirty-seven years ago, who made a great contribution to the development of the enterprise and the city as a whole.
At the very beginning of the history of the Palace, a favorable material base was created for the successful work of such creative groups as the vocal and instrumental ensemble «Elves», the ensemble of the Ural folk dance under the direction of A.S. Khomutov, a variety orchestra conducted by V.A. Mamontov. The theater collective under the direction of Erica Robertovna Kochetkova and Valentina Filippovna Savina united non-professionals devoted to the stage: it was in those years that amateur theatrical creativity was mainly concentrated in Sovremennik. The main part of the collectives consisted of factory workers working at the motorcycle plant. The artists achieved high performing and creative results and were famous and loved not only in the city and region, but also outside our country.
