Aldar announces Dh9.4b housing scheme

Abu Dhabi: Aldar Properties PJSC, Abu Dhabi's largest property developer by market capitalisation, on Sunday announced the launch of Al Falah - a Dh9.4 billion housing project for middle-income UAE nationals.

The announcement was made at a press conference by Aldar's Chairman Ahmad Ali Al Sayegh during Cityscape Abu Dhabi-2009.

"The homes will be distributed for free and the project is fully funded by the government," said Al Sayegh.

The new development will provide around 5,000 homes for middle-income UAE families, as part of the Abu Dhabi Government's housing initiative.

It will comprise of five villages, each with its own village centre, school and mosque. The town centre will be the focal point of the entire development and will contain civic buildings, a 65,000 square metre retail mall, a hospital, 50,000 square metres of office space, a hotel and a sports and leisure complex.

"The government wants to give nationals more than one type of houses to choose from," said Al Sayegh, adding the houses will be handed over to the nationals in stages between 2011 and 2014.

Located to the east of Abu Dhabi International Airport and the Abu Dhabi-Dubai highway, Al Falah has been designed as a practical and sustainable community within a development area of approximately 12 million square metres.

Moving away from the traditional "grid" approach for developments, Al Falah's innovative design encourages community gathering within a number of open parks that connect the residential, commercial and leisure elements, Aldar said in a statement.