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US group unveils Dh4.3b resort
US-based PKN Group said it will develop a Dh4.3-billion resort to bring "Las Vegas-style" living and entertainment to a desert area of Ajman near the border with Ras Al Khaimah.
- By Shakir Husain, Staff Reporter
- Published: 01:03 October 20, 2007
- Patrick Swayze and his wife Lisa Niemi (left) were guests of honour at the dinner hosted by the PKN Group at the Burj Al Arab hotel on Thursday to unveil its Princess Resorts project.
- Image Credit: Karl Jeffs/Gulf News
Dubai: US-based PKN Group said it will develop a Dh4.3-billion resort to bring "Las Vegas-style" living and entertainment to a desert area of Ajman near the border with Ras Al Khaimah.
To hammer home the point that it would be fit for celebrities to live there, the company even brought Dirty Dancing star Patrick Swayze to endorse the plan. The company unveiled its PKN Princess Resort at an event at the Burj Al Arab hotel on Thursday night.
Facilities
The California-based company's chairman Max Paxima said the development is "unlike any other project" attempted in the UAE.
It will offer hundreds of apartments, low-rise houses, a shopping mall, an office tower and a five-star hotel.
A casino will also be built, but without gambling facilities, Paxima said.
"This is a not a gaming and gambling casino. This is a Las Vegas-style entertainment centre," he told Gulf News.
With entertainment being a big theme, the project's unveiling was accompanied by a performance by a troupe of belly dancers, who encouraged the 1987 dance movie star to display his moves.
Watched by dozens of people, including his wife, Swayze's footwork showed the Dirty Dancer has lost a bit of his old fair. Speaking to Gulf News, the Hollywood star explained why he is drawn to the Gulf region.
"I shake your hand and I look in your eyes, that's all the contract we need," he said, referring to the traditional protocol of honouring one's word in business deals. "I am hoping the US will come back to that belief system soon."
The resort is being developed in an equal partnership with the Ajman government, according to PKN. Paxima said the development cost will be about Dh3 billion with potential sales reaching up to Dh5 billion, more than the current projections of Dh4.3 billion.
The 3.1 million-square foot project site is located in the Manamah hills area near Ras Al Khaimah's water spring village of Masafi.
When completed in early 2010, the resort complex promises to become an "exclusive enclave of fun, excitement and first-class living."
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