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The latest architectural development to appear on the Dubai skyline will be a multi-billion dirham complex called the Dubai Festival City. The project, designed by internationally acclaimed architect Jon Jerde, will be completed in 2004 at a cost of Dh6 billion. The private development is the brainchild of Al Futtaim and Sons and will be built on the Dubai Creek near Rashidiya.
It will include an 8,000-seat open-air amphitheatre, 80 restaurants - 40 of which will have a waterfront view - shops, hotels, offices and apartments. The floorplan incorporates 10,000 square metres of space for cinemas, another 10,000 for cultural activities, and 30,000 for additional family entertainment.
Designed to blend with Dubai's desert landscape and the Creek, it will be decorated in traditional desert colours and will have several water features including a marina, four giant waterfalls and its own canal. Jerde said the complex was designed to cope with the UAE's climate and natural resources. "The project was designed to fit totally into Dubai's natural environment. These days green buildings are a big thing and Dubai Festival City will be made up of ecologically smart construction. We will be making use of as many organic local materials as possible so there won't be huge amounts of glass. The buildings will also be coloured in a range of oranges, russets, whites, purples and greens to match the desert colours at all times of the day.
"This is not so much an architectural feat as a creation of environment. Architecture is secondary to creation of place in this case. People don't want to be intellectually challenged, they want to be embraced. "We will also be making use of the natural energy forces. The fact that we've based the city on the Creek means we can make use of the rising and falling tides. Because we are building a canal, there is a question of aeration of the water. We've made use of the tides by making our water features work with them. This way the waterfalls maintain the canal in a natural and energy-efficient manner."
He said wind power and solar energy will also be considered once construction is finished. "We've already taken wind power into account and designed building shapes around it to create efficient wind channels. Solar power is definitely something that we are looking into, although at present, wind and sun energy are very much at conceptual stages." Abubakr Al Futtaim, of Al Futtaim and Sons, said the development of the Garhoud area of the Creek was long overdue.
"Largely this part of the Creek has been ignored by developers in favour of the western side of the city. Over the years, Dubai has expanded inland and areas like Sheikh Zayed Road have become the hubs of the emirate. Ideally, a city should expand on all sides and this is what we are working on. "The project depended on the creativity and availability of the land, both of which were possible, so the planning stages for the whole thing took only six months and building will begin later this month."
The development's name is coincidental and it will not be directly linked to the Dubai Shopping Festival, he said. "We decided to call the complex Dubai Festival City because it will be a place built with festivity in mind. The concept is that everyone will be welcome here and have fun whether they are residents or not. This is what makes it different from the Dubai Marina, which is pretty much exclusive to its residents.
"There will be something for everyone, including hotels ranging from three- to five-star so that as many people can enjoy the area as possible." Lee Laverne Tabler, Chief Executive Officer of Al Futtaim Investments, said that a permanent Global Village will be fixed at Festival City. The village currently attracts over one million visitors during its one month operation.
"One of our objectives is to have the Global Village placed permanently at Dubai Festival City rather than just on a yearly basis for the Shopping Festival. The venue will also be utilised for many events and will attract a whole range of visitors."
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