The value of the DragonMart2 expansion is $272 million
Construction on the expansion of Dubai’s Dragon Mart shopping mall is proceeding at a rapid pace, according to Nakheel.
Engineer Mohammed Rashed Bin Dhabeah, managing director of Development, Projects and Shared Services at the developer says that foundation work on the 177,000sqm DragonMart2 site is over 60% complete. He added that over 80% of the foundation of the attached hotel has also been done.
“We’re powering ahead with the development,” he explained. “Now we’re getting the columns up, that’s in preparation for the first floor slabs. We have a programme in place and our target is to complete the construction by the first half of next year. The fitting out stage will then start, for the tenants to fit out all their stores and be ready for the opening.”
With the scheduled completion date just a year away, Dhabeah says that the amount of workers onsite will increase rapidly as construction progresses. At present there are 1,300 workers onsite daily, but he expects to reach around 4,000 workers at the peak of construction.
“There are no marked delays; we’ve signed the contracts with all the contractors. There was a time when we had to get all the NOC’s, the permits and everything. We’ve got all that and we’ve started work on the area. On the site, the activity is very rapid and very intense,” he added, pointing out that concrete is being poured at between 700-800m3 per day.
The parking facilities in Phase Two of the project will accommodate 4,550 vehicles, with 2,000 in the multi-storey car park, 1,750 on the mall roof and a further 800 at street level.