Abu Dhabi: The Dh4.1 billion Reem Mall project has been granted detailed planning approval by the emirate of Abu Dhabi’s urban planning authority, the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council (UPC), its developers announced in the capital on Tuesday.
The project, which saw its groundbreaking in December 2015, is set to become a leisure, retail and dining destination at the capital’s Reem Island. It is expected to open in the last quarter of 2018, said Shane Eldstrom, chief operating officer.
“The two million-square feet mall, which is similar in size to Mirdif City Centre in Dubai, will have a total built area of 6.1 million square feet, with a large hypermarket spanning 110,000 square feet. It will also include the world’s largest indoor snow park at 125,000 square feet,” he said.
There will be about 450 stores, including 85 food and beverage outlets. It is being developed by Kuwaiti real estate companies NREC and Al Arfaj, a subsidiary of UPAC.
Yasmeen Al Rashedi, senior manager of Estidama (sustainability) at the UPC, told Gulf News that Reem Mall will serve the 210,000 residents who are expected to populate the island by 2030, and is one of three shopping malls outlined in the island’s concept master plan. The other two facilities are the existing Boutik Mall, and the upcoming Paragon Mall within the island’s Marina Square.
“We need to balance the supply of retail and entertainment facilities with the community’s needs. Reem Mall itself will be located adjacent to a number of residential towers on the southern part of the island,” Al Rashedi added.
In addition, even though the mall will feature an indoor snow park, it is targeting a higher sustainability rating than is mandatory for a project of this scale.
“About 50 per cent of the sustainability ratings focus on water and energy conservation measures, and the developers are aiming for these high standards,” Al Rashedi said.
Among one of the mall’s innovative features is that visitors will not need to walk more than 150 metres from a parking spot to its nearest mall entrance, developers said. Washrooms will also be accessible within 90 metres of every spot. In addition, there will be 6,800 parking bays, with many of them located on the roof.
