Dubai, named the fastest growing city in the world, is home to extremely interesting projects of architecture and design. Construction is booming considering that twenty percent of the world’s cranes are currently located in Dubai. Tourism rates are off the charts, making Dubai International Airport the busiest airport in the Middle East.

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What is everyone traveling to Dubai to see? The following is a list of my favorite eight projects being held in the desert city.

Al Burj (The Tower)

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Developer Nakheel, which is known best for its Palm Islands, proposed Al Burj to be a 1.4 km supertall skyscraper located near the Dubai Marina. The tower is actually three separate towers connected by multiple sky bridges. It is planned to be of mixed use, consisting of restaurants, luxury apartments, an observation deck, and more. Surrounding the tower will be about twenty residential towers and a refurbished mall. If constructed, Al Burj will become the tallest building in the world and a shiny icon of the city of Dubai. It would surpass the current tallest building, Burj Dubai, which is still under construction in the same city.

Burj Dubai (Dubai Tower)

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On April 7, 2008, the Burj Dubai became the tallest man-made structure on the planet, and it’s still under construction. The idea for the building was developed by Emaar, one of the largest real estate companies. It is expected to be finished and ready for use in September of 2009, towering over the rest of the city at over 800 meters. The companies in charge for building are Samsung Engineering and Construction, Besix, and Arabtec. The skyscraper will comprise of offices, residential suites, four pools, exclusive clubs, an observation platform, multiple restaurants, a library, and lots of open room.

Do you recall how you are advised to use the stairs in case of an emergency? The Burj Dubai will have certain elevators which will be specially programmed in case of evacuation.
Office space is priced at $4,000 per square foot and certain homes at $3,500 per square foot. The tower is truly a spectacular achievement of mankind.

The Rotating Tower (by David Fisher)

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This is one of the most amazing building ideas being proposed at the moment. David Fisher is credited with the suggestion of dynamic architecture. Basically, the two towers planned for Moscow and Dubai will have the ability to rotate each floor individually, therefore constantly giving them a new shape. As for the Dubai version, it is supposed to have 80 floors, yet 79 wind turbines (one in between each floor). The building will then truly be “green”, considering that it will provide complete power not only for itself, but for buildings around it as well.

Dynamic Architecture also presents a new type of construction using prefabricated parts that will be lifted to each level being built. This speeds up construction time and reduces costs as well as workers needed. This type of building also allows residents to park their cars on the base of the tower and have them lifted up to their home. I’m not sure how this is all going to work out, but there are probably methods I’m not smart enough to understand.

See their site for more details.

The World Islands

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“Mommy, who made the world?”
“Nakheel did, honey.”
Nakheel finds yet another way to amaze all who look at Dubai. This time, they have literally constructed The World, a series of 300 little islands when together make up the shape of the Earth. A model island with a mansion has already been completed to show off to all buyers.
Islands have already been reserved and bought. In the archipelago will be mansions, docks, commercial businesses, and resorts. It will be four kilometers off the coast of Dubai, built with sand taken from the sea. Nakheel stresses that all its manmade islands, including those in The World, will be environmentally friendly and will exist in harmony with all sea creatures and wildlife.

Celebrities such as David Beckham, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee, Vijay Singh, and Michael Schumacher have been linked with The World islands one way or another, whether through investment, endorsement, or other affiliation.

The Palm Islands

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As said previously, Nakheel is known best for its trio of Palm Islands. This includes Palm Deira, Palm Jumeirah, and Palm Jebel Ali. The designs will resemble those in this picture:
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On Palm Jumeirah, residents began moving in by the end of 2006. This palm island adds 78 kilometers of coastline to the city of Dubai. The Palm Jumeirah Monorail will serve as transportation between the trunk and the crescent of the island.
The Palm Islands can be seen from space. An example is this picture, which was taken from the International Space Station.

Then there’s Palm Jebel Ali which began construction in 2002 and has a scheduled completion in 2008. By 2020, the island is expected to be home to 1.7 million people. Boardwalks encircling the Palm will spell out a poem written by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, saying:

Take wisdom from the wise

It takes a man of vision to write on water

Not everyone who rides a horse is a jockey

Great men rise to greater challenges

Four theme parks (SeaWorld, Aquatica, Busch Gardens, and Discovery Cove) will be built on the crescent of the island, which together will be called World of Discovery.
Nakheel held a competition with several architects to design a building that would exist on a certain piece of land on Palm Jebel Ali. This was the winning design.

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When completed, Palm Deira will be the largest man-made island in the world. It will be home to over a million people and will have a unique shape differing from the other two palm islands. Several sources report that the island should be completed by 2015. This palm island isn’t as far into construction as the other two are. It should resemble this when completed.

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The Universe Islands

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The World wasn’t enough; Nakheel now has to own the Universe as well. Islands will be constructed in the shapes of the sun, moon, and planets. There isn’t much to say at the moment since it is still in its planning stages. It is meant to be the flagship in Nakheel’s initiative named “Blue Communities”, whose goal is to create a sustainable environment. The Universe will surround The World in three directions. The project was announced at the same time that Nakheel proposed a redevelopment of Port Rashid.
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Dubai Towers

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The names are getting a little unoriginal, but the designs definitely aren’t. Dubai Towers claims that its project was “inspired by the movement of candlelight”.
The series of towers will offer an amazing view of the waterfront, restaurants, a 6-star hotel, office space, gymnasiums, apartments, and elegant design. The four structures will range between 57 to 94 floors and is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2009.

Dubai Towers is only one of the projects proposed by the company Sama Dubai. Another includes Dubai Towers – Doha and Dubai Towers – Istanbul. Dubai will have yet another icon of its individuality and beauty.

Burj al-Arab (Tower of the Arabs)

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Burj al-Arab is the tallest hotel in the world, and quite possibly the most beautiful. It was built to imitate a boat’s sail. Out of 5 stars, the hotel claims 7 in quality. It contributes to the fact that Dubai has more hotel rooms than Miami beach, despite the fact that it’s actually a desert.

The building features the tallest atrium in the world. It also claims to have 8,000 square meters of 22-carat gold leaf. There are 202 bedroom suites. Prices start at $1,000 a night, while the Royal Suite starts at $28,000 a night. The Burj al-Arab is one of the most expensive hotels ever built.

There is a helipad on top of the building which is famous for certain events. Tiger Woods shot golf balls off of the top of it, while Roger Federer and Andre Agassi played each other in a match of tennis. There are no boundaries, so tennis balls would go flying past the edge onto the ground, or sea, below.

Sadly, the Rose Tower in Dubai plans on passing the Burj al-Arab in the record of the tallest hotel. In fact, it already has, but since the building has not been opened yet, it does not claim the title yet.

There are countless other developments going on in Dubai at the moment, many just as amazing as these are. Dubai has become a prime example of modern architecture and the understanding that dreams can be made into reality.

See the sequel to this article “Seven More Top Construction Projects in Dubai” here:
Seven More Top Dubai Construction Projects