The first wave of real estate developments on Deira Islands is positioning the Nakheel master development as a key tourist destination, but officials assured a second wave of projects to be announced later this year will open the man-made islands to freehold ownership. Nakheel said it has already awarded Dh3 billion worth of contracts as of last month, with more multibillion-dirham contracts to be awarded this year.
And while most of the announced projects are being developed by Nakheel independently or through joint ventures, freehold plots near the centre of island A will be released to private developers later this year.
“There will be freehold,” said Ali Rashid Lootah, chairman of Nakheel, during a tour of one of Deira Islands' four islands last week. “We might launch the [freehold plots located] in the centre of the island before the end of this year. Around the mall, there will be some commercial plots for sale.”
Waterpaks and shops
Underlining the island’s tourism-led approach, most projects announced by the developer are located along a 6km stretch of white sand beach and around the island’s flagship retail project, Deira Mall. The beachfront developments include a Dh900-million joint venture (JV) between Nakheel and RIU Hotels and Resorts and the Dh450-million Deira Islands resort, a JV with Centara Hotels and Resorts. The 800-room RIU and the 550-room Deira Islands resort will both feature waterparks.
Lootah said two more hotel resort JVs will be announced later this year.
The developer received construction bids for Deira Mall last week. Located in the middle of island A, the mall will offer 4.5 million sq ft of leasable space, which is bigger than The Dubai Mall’s 3.77 million sq ft.
Nakheel said it has finished 90 per cent of coastal works on islands A and B, including 9.6km of beaches, with the entire coastline set to be ready in July, allowing the beachfront projects to commence later this year.
Deira Islands will create 40km of coastline, including 21km of beaches. However, Nakheel is only currently working on islands A and B and has not announced development plans for the two other islands.
Also under way is Deira Islands Boulevard, which will have six hospitality and 16 residential buildings, combining for over 2,900 apartments and 1,000 hotel rooms and serviced apartments.
Homes for rent
All residences under development are only for lease. Freehold properties could come in once Nakheel starts selling plots to third-party developers later this year.
Deira Islands will include several marinas with moorings for yachts and small boats. Nakheel has not released plans, but Lootah says one will be linked to the Dubai Creek. “I think this will be one of the best marinas because it’s facing the sea and has a connection to the Creek, so it’s very accessible,” said Lootah during an inspection of the site, where a quay is already in place.
Open in 2018
Infrastructure work on islands A and B will be completed next year and in 2019 respectively, while the projects currently under way are expected to be ready by 2020. Deira Islands, however, could open to the public as early as the second half of next year with the completion of the Dh1.57-billion Deira Islands Night Souq. Built along a quayside opposite Deira’s coastline, the 2km souq will have 5,300 shops, including eateries fronting an esplanade.
Some 250,000 people are expected to live on the islands, while around 80,000 jobs will be created.
Deira Islands is accessible through a Dh150-million bridge that was opened by the RTA in November, connecting island A to Al Khaleej Road in Deira. Nakheel said the bridge, which has two lanes in each direction, could be expanded as traffic to the island increases, while a second bridge also on island A is already on the drawing board. A series of bridges are also under way linking the four islands to each other.