The shopping-loving city that is home to one of the world’s largest shopping malls wants to build one even bigger.
Dubai ruler Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has laid out plans for a sprawling real-estate project known as Mall of the World that will include the 8 million square foot (743,224 square meter) mall, a climate-controlled street network, a theme park covered during the scorching summer months and 100 hotels and serviced apartments.
It will also have the biggest conference room in the Middle East, a hall for weddings, a film and theater training center and a parking lot capable of holding 50,000 vehicles.
The emir of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, said that “the high growth rate of the real estate sector and of family tourism oblige us to start preparing now for the future.”
“I announced some time ago that we want to be the economic, touristic and cultural capital of the region and we take that vision seriously,” he said.
For his part, the chairman of Dubai Holding, Mohammed Al Gergawi, said the gigantic mall will be built in several stages, in line with the growth of tourism in the emirate, though no precise dates have been set.
Agencies/Canadajournal