Dubai ups the ante, plans 68 new projects to boost quality of life

As part of its ongoing initiative to transform this glitzy desert city and further improve the quality of life, the Dubai Municipality has announced some 68 projects valued at approx Dh 4.5 mn that are currently being reviewed, designed or implemented.

The clutch of new projects which are set for completion by the year end range from the new Dh299 million Dubai Safari Park to a Dh269 million fish market and an iconic Dh160 million project shaped like a giant Dubai frame.

According to highly-placed sources in the Municipality, among the 10 large projects that are scheduled for completion this year are the fish market, which is 85 per cent complete, and the Dubai Frame project, which is 75 per cent complete.

The fish market will be ready in September while the Dubai Frame project which will frame views of the city allowing a scene of Old Dubai from one side and the New Dubai skyline from another, is expected to be ready on the 44th UAE National Day this December.

Also making the cut is the city's much-awaited zoo park coming up opposite Dragon Mart, where currently the basic iron structures forming the animal cages are being fitted and work is being done to finish the main building. The park is expected to be ready for the public by the end of November.

Some of the other key projects likely to be completed this year include a market for buying and selling used furniture, which is nearly 90 percent ready, the Hatta Heritage Souq and Motel, expected (to be ready in December), the Dubai Club for Special Sports (to be ready in October), villas in Hatta and Al Quoz, the Hatta community centre, and the Dubai Centre for Wetlands, which is also slated for completion sometime for October this year.

Redesigning and renovating several parks for the purpose of increasing green spaces in the city and delivering public squares and the African Village are just some of the projects to expect within the coming years.

The Dubai Municipality has also finalized a choc-a-bloc schedule for next year, with another lot of nine big projects lining up for completion. A list that includes the African Village as part of the Safari project, (slated for completion in June next year), the General Directorate and Foreign Affairs building, Al Thuraya Astronomy Centre, Zayed University project and market for scrap materials.

Municipality sources further add that another 25 horticulture projects and eight park redesigning projects are being reviewed in Al Mizhar, Al Quoz, Al Muteena, Al Khawaneej, Al Warqa'a 3 and other locations. In the current phase, approx three parks and public squares are being designed while the total cost of all these projects is estimated to be approx Dh 100 mn.

 According to the civic agency's public projects department 11 service projects worth in excess of Dh 79 mn had been approved this year, while another nine parks and public square projects worth around Dh77 million are already under construction. This includes the Quran Park project which is currently in its third phase of construction, and Palm Park, which is expected to be ready in December next year.

14 other projects valued at over Dh 1.3 bn were also being reviewed by the municipality and they are already being designed. A list that includes mega projects including the Dh 133 mn Global Court project, the Dh 385 mn Mohammad Bin Rashid Library and the Dh320 million Mohammad Bin Rashid Electronic College project.