Nakheel unveils centrepiece of giant Waterfront development

Dubai: Nakheel has revealed the masterplan for Waterfront City, the centrepiece of Waterfront, the largest urban development project in the world.

Waterfront City will have a residential population of about 92,000 and a working population of 310,000 people. Covering more than 330 hectares, Waterfront City will comprise a central island surrounded by four districts - the Boulevard, Madinat Al Soor, the Resort, and the Marina.

Located on the western coast of Dubai, the entire Waterfront development will transform 1.4 billion square feet of desert and sea into a community for an estimated population of 1.5 million people.

Matt Joyce, Nakheel managing director, Waterfront, said: "Waterfront City is set to form the 'heart' of Waterfront and the masterplan has been designed in such a way to cater not only for businesses, but for Dubai residents and visitors alike. Each of the five districts making up Waterfront City possesses its own individual character and is vital for the promotion of a diverse and unified city.

"It will have a density similar to that of Manhattan, and with that in mind, commerce, retail, culture, and private accommodation will be overlapped to create a compact city centre."

The Central Island district, a grid of five streets by five streets, will be the defining element of the design of Waterfront City; it will create walkable distances between blocks, easing the flow of traffic passing through the city. To ensure maximum shading and climate control in the city, the higher building masses will be concentrated on the south side, also making efficient use of wind flows for cooling. Each city block will be lined with arcades and planted with trees.