City of Arabia is one of the most famed developments in Dubai. Having bragged about the one of its kind Jurassic park and a gigantic shopping mall, the development is not just anticipated by its investors but also by people from different walks of life. Recently the Editorial Department of Gowealthy.com took this great opportunity to organize a small tryst with Mr. Anwer Sher, Director of City of Arabia, to discuss the development as such and the proposed lifestyle.
Q1: Define City Of Arabia project in a nutshell?
Anwer S.: City of Arabia is basically the downtown of what's becoming the new Dubai. It's the heart of Dubailand; a mixed-use development with the world's largest shopping mall plus residential and commercial components.
Q2: How would you compare Wadi Walk with other high rise developments in the City of Arabia?
The design and layout of City of Arabia is done in such a way that there is a feeling of openness. We've followed a concept of inside-out design, so when you look inwards from the high towers you don't have any obstruction in your way, whereas if you are in Wadi Walk you are a good distance away from the high towers so you don't feel that they are right on top of your head. We have kept the synergy and integrity of design by keeping that openness. Wadi Walk is basically what I call the spine of Dubailand; the way it has been laid out ensures that once it's built you can't keep on adding more buildings to it and make it look crowded, like many other developments have become. It's a closed integrated plan, and that's the uniqueness of it; even if you wanted to there's no ability to add any more building to it.
Q3: Once completed, how do you visualize the lifestyle of the City of Arabia?
As Dubai grows, the requirement for suburbs which cater for the needs of people is becoming more acute. If I, for example, lived around the Burj Al Arab area today, I would very rarely cross to the creek area, unless I have to go to the airport. We tend to stick to the same area, and this habit is becoming common in Dubai because of the traffic issues. Dubailand has been designed as a self-contained community in terms of the needs of people. Of course you will go to other areas, there are other attractions around Dubailand and a lot of activities, but the residents of the City of Arabia can shop, work and entertain themselves all within the community. We've kept in mind the life pattern of the people 10 to 15 years from now and that's exactly what we've tried to cater to.
 |
| Anwer Sher- Director City of Arabia |
Q4: Any similar projects outside City of Arabia or Dubailand?
At the moment we just want to concentrate on what we are doing. We want to get it right and then talk about this.
Q5: What is the unique selling point of the City of Arabia projects?
I think the biggest USP for us is that, City of Arabia is an 'experience locality'. It's not just concrete and mortar, but an experience. It is about a lifestyle and that's how the components have been put together; cleverly, in terms of the long term needs of the people. Everyone who has bought properties at City of Arabia tends to feel that it is one of those projects that have a soul to it. In reality we could have added another 30 buildings to it, but we have kept the openness in such a way that it gives a nice feeling of comfort and peace.
Q6: What are the resale & investment opportunities for the investor/buyers of the City of Arabia?
We launched the Wadi walk at around Dh825/sqft. Today it's over Dh1200/sqft that speaks for itself. After just one year it has done extremely well. We think that it will maintain this hike as we have seen a great interest from end-users. We know this by the mortgages the buyers/investors are getting, the people who fill out the forms and from individual buyers. I think the perceived value is there and people have seen it.
Now for a person who is buying for residence; his primary concern is what's the place is going to be like when he lives there. A person who is buying for investment is more concerned on how soon he can flip it. We haven't seen our property on the secondary market much. You pick up a newspaper and you will never see an ad by a person telling that he has paid 20% and he wants to resell. This is proof that the product is being liked by the buyers; they are not selling it or flipping it, even though the value has gone up 40%. In most cases a property goes up 20% and people will start selling it. This shows the buyer is surer of the offering rather than mere profit, even though the latter is strong; it in a sense creates strength in the product in the long run, because when the profit margin increases, it gets to the stage where people start offering it on the secondary market. Work is progressing, we have mobilized our contractors, and the project will be completed in 24 months. We have done very well with sales considering we haven't offered it on the mass market. To me, a project sold out usually means that the investor wants to flip it later.
Q7: How is the City of Arabia different from other mega projects in Dubai?
I think it's the fact that the Mall of Arabia is there, which has made it a success. We have signed, finalized and negotiated about 80% of the leases. Another interesting feature that stands out well within City of Arabia is the Restless Planet; one of its kind in the world. There is nothing to compete with it. And that's how City of Arabia is different from other developments and offers such a strong USP for competition to overcome.
Q8: Any words on the Top Prop 2007 Promotion by Gowealthy.com, since you were the first development to be on the home page?
We are delighted to be associated with GoWealthy.com, and are thankful for the attention we were given during the Top Prop Promotion, moreover we hope that this promotion will further strengthen our relationship with Gowealthy.com and lead to more prosperous partnership.
Q9: Any words on your relationship with Gowealthy.com as your property agent?
We have a very strong relationship with Gowealthy. I think with Mr. Sidhartan and Peter Penhall we have learnt a lot. As we built the team, the relation is also getting stronger. Gowealthy is extremely important to us; we don't give exclusivity to any one, but in all fairness our relationship with Gowealthy.com is very strong.
By: Lamiya Sami- Editor Gowealthy.com
GOWEALTHY.COM © 2006.
For comments: editor@gowealthy.com
PR coordinator: Yousef Gekhaev (Golin Harris)
