Why is Dubai Dreaming Again?
Can the construction of Mohammed bin Rashid City help kick-start a new boom for the industry in Dubai just when we thought the dream was over? Charles Martin writes
But what about the infrastructure? Wael Allan of Hyder Consulting explains: “The infrastructure is there. You need roads, drainage and these have been strategically developed over a number of years. You need transport and the RTA has this planned. The Dubai Hills announcement makes perfect sense. You bring the people in and they use water. Then you recycle that water and use it to make parks and green features.
“The transport system here is very good, probably the best in the GCC. The combination of the Metro, the road system and the taxis are great. In JBR the tram system is being built and feeder buses bring people into the central zones. Dubai is one of the only cities in the world where you can live without a car. If you compare it to Los Angeles for example, it has a comprehensive mass transit system. The integrated characteristics of Dubai’s transport system has improved exponentially in recent times.
“Before any development is proposed the government calls in consultants and they define the need.Planning has matured a lot since Hyder started working in Dubai more than 30 years ago. It has grown up. You have to understand with cities you start with the larger picture and then zoom in. All of the elements lock together and no one part can be developed without reference to the others. Crucially you can’t micro manage a city, and some elements that seem odd are part of a larger plan.”
Amongst all this good news though, are some voices of dissent. Mohammed Al Rais, managing director of Hill International, says that: “Dubai needs to complete stalled projects before it embarks on new projects such as the MBR City and the Business Bay Canal project. The MBR City is actually a continuation of Business Bay, while the Canal project, will link it with the other side (of Dubai). It was something that was discussed, from memory, almost eight years ago. But it was never taken up at that time.”
Hyder’s Allan offers an opposing view: “I can see the argument, but the canal project will not affect the overall transport of the city, maybe 2-4% and that will mostly be tourist related traffic. Obviously the canals will add more waterfront developments to Dubai and those properties are desirable. As for developing what we have, there are good developments and bad ones. The good ones will eventually get developed.”
The crash of 2008 was not Dubai’s fault, it was the fallout from the world economic crisis originating in the USA and passing across Europe like a virus. Dubai appears to be bouncing back but the rating agency Moody’s downgrading of Emirates NBD, Commercial Bank of Dubai and Mashreq bank is a reminder that the bad debts of the last boom weigh on the Dubai economy.
One thing is sure, though. As Nicholas Maclean of CBRE points out Dubai is a sort of Middle East-light for investors: “All things being equal investors will choose Dubai as their point of entry into the Middle East. It is easy to attract staff here and when they arrive there is the ability for them to have a good social life. Also Dubai is safe and family friendly.”
Wael Allan of Hyder agrees: “Without specific financial incentives, such as those offered by Abu Dhabi, Dubai would naturally be the first choice for corporates.”
The question is whether the Sheikh making announcements like MBR city is an attempt to prime the pump and talk up Dubai to the world. Wael Allan says, “that’s the job of a ruler. It’s what he should be doing. Only he has a clear vision of where Dubai is going and he is there to drive progress forward. It’s exactly the same as the head of any other country. He is our leader and represents Dubai to the world.”
CBRE’s Green agrees: “The MBR City project is clearly a long term strategy which requires a sensible and methodically planned phasing system to deliver supply to the market over the next 20-30 years.”
Perhaps the last word should come from Sheikh Mohammed: “Most people talk, we do things. They plan, we achieve. They hesitate, we move ahead. We are living proof that when human beings have the courage and commitment to transform a dream into reality, there is nothing that can stop them.”
