Sharjah Oasis Real Estate Development launched one of its most iconic projects, the Sharjah Waterfront City, at the Cityscape Global 2015 held in Dubai, the UAE, last month.

Commenting on the launch, Hayssam El Masri, president of Sharjah Oasis Real Estate Development, says: “We have launched Sharjah Waterfront City keeping in line with Sharjah’s development plans to attract 10 million visitors to the emirate by 2021. These robust plans will increase demand for residential and commercial units as well as hotels, especially in prime locations that offer all modern facilities. We can proudly say Sharjah Waterfront City will be able to match the demands and provide the desired quality of living.”

The real estate project, which will cost $2.5 billion in the first phase,  aims to create a luxurious and environment-friendly city offering a family-oriented experience. It is spread across 36 km of coastline with a total area of 60 million sq ft providing a well developed residential, commercial, and tourism development project in the region.

El Masri ... green focus.

Sharjah Waterfront City consists of a series of 10 islands interconnected by natural canals featuring villas, apartments, offices, hotels, water theme park, marine clubs, parks and more. The development will be developed in a number of stages with the target to complete Phase One by Q3, 2018.

Commenting on the project, Sheikh Abdullah Shkara, chairman of Saudi-based Al Hanoo Real Estate Company, says: “We have invested a lot in this project and we are delighted to see Sharjah Oasis Real Estate Development doing a tremendous job in the construction of Sharjah Waterfront City. We believe this project will be the heartbeat of the city’s tourism 2021 vision.”

Al Hanoo has established its credentials in the region, when it launched the successful Al Hanoo Industrial City and Emirates Industrial City in Sharjah.

Sharjah Oasis Real Estate Development has also announced its partnership with Invest Bank on funding the project, with a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the two parties to fund the first phase.

“After carefully assessing the project, we realised the potential and the impact it will have on the community in Sharjah. Currently we are funding the first phase of the project which is expected to be completed by 2016. We are also considering the possibility of financing the remaining phases and end users, subject to the bank’s terms and conditions,” says Sami Rashid Farahat, the bank’s general manager.

Crystal Lagoon water theme park ... full of fun.

Meanwhile, Dusit-Sharjah Waterfront City and Shaza-Sharjah Waterfront City (a Kempinski affiliate) have become the first two hotels to sign an agreement to be set up at the waterfront development. The hotels are expected to start construction by Q4, 2016 and to open to public in 2019.

Dusit-Sharjah Waterfront City will be an entry-level five-star hotel with a minimum of 200 keys. There will also be a serviced residence component with at least 200 keys and facilities such as male and female spas, health and fitness centre, pool, meeting facilities and business centre/lounge.

Shaza-Sharjah Waterfront City Hotel, on the other hand, will meet the standards of an international five-star hotel. It will consist of 300 hotel keys and 350 serviced apartments. The hotel will also include the Shaza “hammam and spa” facility, a fitness facility, food and beverage outlets, banqueting and conference facilities, the Shaza kids’ club, a “library lounge” and other recreational facilities, retail space and adequate parking space.