Dubai: The UAE will soon get a new shopping destination that is expected to break another record, with Nakheel announcing this week that it will begin the construction of Deira Mall in the first quarter of the year.
The developer claims that the Dh6.1 billion mega complex is going to be the biggest in the Middle East. The mall is designed to have as gross leasable area (GLA) of 4.5 million square feet, trumping Dubai Mall, which currently has 3.77 million square feet or 35 hectares.
Emaar’s Dubai Mall, however, will remain as the world’s largest shopping mall in terms of total area.
The proposed mall will be built on Deira Islands, formerly called Palm Deira, and feature more than 1,000 shops, cafes, restaurants and entertainment outlets.
Since it's bigger in terms of GLA, it is expected to offer more shopping options than any mall in the region. GLA refers to the available floor space designated for rent to merchants.
Its roof will be made of state-of-the-art retractable glass that will bring natural light into the complex, and allow for open-air shopping during cooler months.
The project is scheduled for completion in 2021 and will be the centerpiece of Deiral Central, a nine million square foot mixed-use community at the heart of Deira Islands.
Here's how the next shopping destination in the Middle East will look like.
The five biggest malls in the world in terms of gross leasable area:
1.South China Mall (China): 7.1 million square feet
2.SM Tianjin (China) : 5.8 million square feet
3.Golden Resources Mall (China): 6 million square feet
4.SM City North Edsa (Philippines): 5.4 million square feet
5. 1 Utama (Malaysia): 5.2 million square feet
