ABU DHABI , 18 January 2007 — The emirate of Abu Dhabi will have a new waterfront destination — dubbed The Quay — with the redevelopment of the city’s previous Tourist Club site into a world-class tourism, residential and commercial shoreline hub.
Construction of project is to commence shortly and is expected to take three years to complete. Khor Abu Dhabi Property Development LLC, an investor consortium led by Abu Dhabi’s Al-Masaood, one of the capital’s leading industrial and commercial conglomerates, will build the project.
The consortium entered into partnership for the site with the Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC), the asset development arm of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), following a competitive bid, which saw five projects, being proposed. “The Quay will deliver a unique urban experience which will greatly enhance Abu Dhabi’s expanding international tourism proposition. It will be a destination in its own right and will hold to the Tourist Club’s legacy of providing vast open waterfront spaces for public use,” said Sheikh Sultan ibn Tahnoon Al-Nahyan, chairman of both TDIC and ADTA.
Spanning 1.5 million square feet, The Quay has been master planned by Australia’s award-winning Cox Group — renowned designers who have undertaken major waterfront projects in Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, China and South Africa. “The Quay has been inspired by some of the world’s best ocean settings and is reminiscent of Darling Harbor in Sydney and Capetown’s Victoria & Albert Waterfront,” explained Abdullah Al-Masaood, chairman of Al-Masaood.
“It is one of the single largest urban redevelopment schemes in the UAE and will leverage the magnificent Arabian Gulf setting to deliver a destination of wide regional and international appeal,” he said.
A mixed-use development with leisure, residential and commercial facets, The Quay, which will be only minutes from Abu Dhabi’s business center, will feature a 620-room five-star hotel.
The destination will also boast a new lifestyle retail center housing Abu Dhabi’s first aquarium, gated residential community of around 400 leased luxury apartments, and 592,000 square feet of quayside office space housed in two, 20-story towers. A 60-berth active marina will be central to a public promenade which will be animated by a waterfront entertainment and food precinct with a range of fashionable, harbor-view cafés and restaurants. It will have car parking for 3,600 vehicles.
