First it was a tower – over 820 metres high – beaming out of a desert nation.
In early 2010, six years after its construction kicked off, the iconic Burj Khalifa was inaugurated – with a dramatic fireworks display as the world’s tallest skyscraper pierced through Dubai skies.
Now real estate developer Azizi is planning to erect a new building in Dubai. It acquired a plot along Sheikh Zayed Road on Wednesday, and said they are preparing to announce a project that “will be an absolute game-changer.”
“While the design is currently in progress, we have already finalised decisions on several key aspects – features and a design philosophy that are truly unique, globally, and that will elevate Dubai’s awe-inspiring skyline to even greater heights,” Mirwais Azizi, the developer’s founder and chairman, said in a statement.
Without giving specific details, he said the new project is inspired by the vision of Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and claims it will be among the most prominent buildings in the world.
The plot is located adjacent to the metro station in Dubai’s World Trade Centre, close to the iconic Museum of the Future along Sheikh Zayed Road. The development will comprise residential, hospitality, and retail spaces.
“We will share more information on this soon-to-be, revolutionary landmark in due course,” Azizi added.
The announcement follows a host of innovative real estate concepts in Dubai revealed in recent weeks – including a gigantic sky ring by architecture firm ZNera Space and a resort featuring a life-size replica of the Moon by a Canadian company.
These buildings are presumably aiming to replicate the success of Emaar’s Burj Khalifa, which has effectively put the UAE on the map, most obviously among tourists.
Before the pandemic, world’s tallest tower recorded a visitor count of 6.19 million, making it the most visited tourist attraction in Dubai at the time.
More than a skyscraper, the Emaar skyscraper has now been a symbol of the UAE’s ambitious goal to be regarded as one of the most innovative countries in the world.
“We are seeing a proportionately large number of modern, innovative developments, but this drive is coming from a long-standing desire to set new standards and raise the global benchmark,” John Brash, a branding consultant Emaar hired to help drive Burj Khalifa’s narrative.
Cities across the Arabian Gulf, including Riyadh, Doha, and Muscat, have seen rapid growth in population and economies in recent years, which Brash said local governments were able to sustain even amid a Covid-induced market downturn.
“Governments in the Middle East quite quickly adopted successful strategies to control and reduce the impact of Covid, and that is one of the key reasons we’re seeing a relatively swift recovery,” he explained.
Just earlier this year, Saudi Arabia has announced more details of its ambitious urban project The Line, a vertical city within the $500 billion NEOM site in the northern region of the Kingdom.
To fully realise the megaproject, the Kingdom is incentivising foreign investors to take part in the development. The first phase of NEOM will cost around SAR1.2 trillion, about half of which is covered by the Saudi wealth fund. The remaining SAR600 billion will have to come from other investors.
Commenting on what sceptics say about how realistic the Saudi project is, Brash said: “It’s important to remember that many projects are promoted while in the concept phase and then strength-tested through a due diligence and feasibility stage.”
The branding executive mentioned Burj Khalifa as a clear example of how a clear vision and a strong business model could make these projects come to life.
“Working on that project, it was clear from the outset that it wasn’t just about creating the world’s tallest building – it wasn’t a PR gimmick,” Brash, who also worked on other iconic real estate developments across the world, said.
He said it was about “signposting that the world was about signposting that the world was starting to credibly move east, showcasing a new level of human achievement, and demonstrating how to maximise the value of land to deliver (at the time) the world’s most expensive square metre.”
Brash added Saudi Arabia’s The Line offers a “vision of what urban planning could, pushing the limits of human imagination.”
“It doesn’t mean that every city is now going to be built in this way; it’s just introducing a new thread of thinking into the conversation. I, personally, think that’s very exciting,” he said.
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