Dubai: Emirates airline's pilots — many of them coming on board to fly the carrier's A380s — will have a new gated community all to themselves in the Meydan master-development.
In all, there will be 528 townhouses built for Emirates under a new agreement with Meydan. Down the line, there could be room for more properties to be added.
The two entities have jointly conceptualised and designed the project and will also work together in developing it.
These properties and associated areas and facilities such as a clubhouse and commercial centre will occupy 2.94 million square feet of Meydan Heights, a low-rise mixed-use component within the wider Meydan City. Under the terms, the Emirates Group can acquire the properties under a 16-year lease-to-own provision.
Contracts are to be awarded shortly for construction to start, with projected completion in three years. But a senior official said that given the nature of the project, it could take still less time.
Scope for expansion
Also, there is ample scope for the partners to extend the scope of the agreement. "One primary reason in selecting Meydan is the location is they have the additional area to give us more space if we so require in future," said Husain Ghafan Al Basti, vice-president for facilities at Emirates.
"While we have 2,200 pilots now, we are going to need a lot more to fly the A380s, and it's with an eye on that we decided for this venture."
"Meydan is sending a strong message that it is addressing the requirements and gaps in the property market," said Saeed Humaid Al Tayer, chairman and CEO of Meydan City Corporation.
"From submitting a proposal to now signing the agreement with Emirates in a matter of months is our way of responding to the so called crisis. "We see opportunities where others can only see crises."
Emirates Group is the second major name from local corporate circles set to move into Meydan after banking major Emirates NBD's interest in three buildings in the master-development. On a parallel track, the location is starting to attract a certain degree of interest from businesses looking to lease space.
Other projects
The deal with Emirates has now reinforced its credentials as a prime residential location in the making. A nine-hole golf course is all set to start play from September.
Meanwhile, Meydan is awaiting the final "endorsement" for its design of a multi-billion dollar equestrian development near Tianjin in China, Al Tayer said.
"The overall design is done, it's been shown to the concerned authorities and it should be a matter of time before everything is in place," he said.
As with the Meydan City development in Dubai, the project in China will encompass a grandstand, extensive commercial and residential elements and three hotels.
