They have the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper. They have the iconic Burj Al Arab, the iconic ship-shaped luxury hotel on a manmade island. They also have the Palm Islands, a man-made palm-shaped archipelago of mixed-use property. Naturally, the next step for the largest emirate of this small country on the Arabian Peninsula is to build the largest indoor ‘city’ in the world.
The emirate’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid, expressed in a press release that the project, dubbed Mall of the World, is part of his plans to transform Dubai into “a cultural, tourist and economic hub for the two billion people living in the region around us.”
The project will house the world’s largest mall, largest indoor park, cultural theatres and wellness resorts with a capacity to host over 180 million visitors annually. So it’s not really a city, but close enough.
The mall will occupy 8 million square feet connected to 100 hotels and serviced apartment buildings with 20,000 hotel rooms. 3 million square feet is allocated for the wellness district.
For recreation, the cultural district will have theatres built around New York’s Broadway and shopping streets based on London’s Oxford Street.
All of this inside an enclosed, air-conditioned building that is intended to allow tourists to “be able to enjoy a week-long stay without the need to leave the city or use a car.”
The Independent reports that the Sheikh, who is also vice president of the United Arab Emirates, owns the company responsible for the development, Dubai Holding.
Though details of the timeframe and the cost of the project are yet to be released, it is expected that the development will be Dubai’s main focus at the UAE World Expo trade fair in 2020.
For a better chance at visualizing the project's proportions, view the rest of the infographic from Dubai Holding here.
Related Stories
| May 30, 2012
Hill International to manage construction of Al Risafa Stadium in Iraq
The three-year contract has an estimated value to Hill of approximately $3.3 million.
| May 29, 2012
Torrance Memorial Medical Center’s pediatric burn patients create their version of new Patient Tower using Legos
McCarthy workers joined the patients, donning construction gear and hard hats, to help with their building efforts.
| May 29, 2012
Reconstruction Awards Entry Information
Download a PDF of the Entry Information at the bottom of this page.
| May 29, 2012
AIA expands Documents-On-Demand service??
Six new documents added, DOD offers nearly 100 contract documents.
| May 29, 2012
Legrand achieves over 20% energy-intensity reduction in Presidential Challenge
West Hartford headquarters announced as Better Buildings, Better Plants “Showcase” site.
| May 29, 2012
Thornton Tomasetti/Fore Solutions provides consulting for Phase I of Acadia Gateway Center
Project receives LEED Gold certification.
| May 24, 2012
2012 Reconstruction Awards Entry Form
Download a PDF of the Entry Form at the bottom of this page.
| May 24, 2012
Gilbane’s Spring 2012 economic report identifies multiple positive economic and market factors
Anticipating increasing escalation in owner costs through 2014.
| May 24, 2012
Construction backlog declines 5.4% in the first quarter of 2012?
The nation’s nonresidential construction activity will remain soft during the summer months, with flat to declining nonresidential construction spending.
