Dubai's Monstrosities: Still Scheduled for Completion

With last week's announcement of Busch's four-park deal in Dubai -- they'll be running a Busch Gardens, SeaWorld, Discovery Cove, and Aquatica water park -- it's worth revisiting what's been going on with all the developments we've covered in Dubai before. And there are plenty of new schemes in the offing as well. Someone somewhere really should maintain an obsessive blog about what's popping in Dubai real estate (hello Curbed?), but failing that, here's a roundup of some of the biggest, weirdest, and most expensive skyscrapers and manufactured metropoli in Dubai and environs. Not comprehensive by any means, because I have a life, you know?

Lyon-Dubai City -- Currently shopping for building sites, the Dubai-generated tribute to the "soul" of the city of Lyon will supposedly include subsidiaries of major Lyonnais museums, shops, and other institutions; plus, magic science will "naturally cool outdoor spaces to make strolling during dust storms and scorching heat bearable." The plan calls for 750 to 1,000 acres of Francophilia. No work dates yet, but hey, they gots a blog.

Burj Dubai -- Already the world's tallest building at 2,006 feet and 160 stories, the Burj Dubai has only to pass one last radio tower in North Dakota and a (no longer standing) radio tower in Poland to become the world's current tallest structure and world's tallest structure ever, respectively. Though the final completed height is a secret, best guesses place it around 2,684 feet, with occupancy coming in September 2009.

The Pad -- Formerly "the iPad." I'm guessing someone on the developer's side came to their senses and dropped the "i". That said, the Pad still markets itself as "the most technologically advanced building in the world," which translates to reams of techno-gobbledygook with few specifics. One imagines everything will be wired up the ass for net connectivity and automated control, et cetera. And it will no doubt look quite futuristic, as its facade is all glimmery and the whole building tilts at a 7-degree angle. Scheduled for completion in December 2009.

City of Arabia -- Part of the larger (much, much larger) Dubailand development, the City of Arabia serves as a main commercial and residential hub. It's got the giant Mall of Arabia, a huge artificial riverfront known as the Wadi Walk, several residential and commercial skyscrapers, and the Restless Planet animatronic dinosaur theme park. Scheduled for completion, in phases, throughout 2009.

Bawadi Dubai -- Colloquially referred to as "hotel city," the Bawadi development was originally set to open 31 hotels; recently, that number was expanded to 51 hotels, shooting for a total of 60,000 rooms in a strip "four times bigger than Las Vegas." Allah only knows when these various monstrous properties will come online, though predictions range through 2016.

The World -- One of my personal favorite punching bags for hubristic development, the World -- an archipelago of artificial sand islands meant to resemble Earth's continents -- supposedly finished its first phrase of construction in January 2008. That consisted of completing the breakwater that surrounds the islands and will hopefully prevent them from eroding. Various islands and continents have already been sold; the next phase comes with the formal handover from developer to the various new owners. Could turn into the craziest polyglot development in town, given that it naturally attracts the esoteric rich.

Infinity Tower -- This waterfront skyscraper will supposedly be the tallest with a twist ever built, but unfortunately, its future is in doubt. In 2006, a diaphragm wall cracked and collapsed, flooding the foundation work and excavations. Originally scheduled for 2009 completion, all work is currently on hold.

The Palm Islands -- Much like the World, the Palm Islands are artificial island groups created by dredging up sand and shaping it into palm-shaped archipelagos. Three Palm island groups exist -- the Palm Jumeirah (many residents already moving into the "fronds," with the main "trunk" development set to finish in early-mid 2008), the Palm Jebel Ali (construction of islands scheduled to complete in 2008), and the Palm Deira (rough timetable calls for 2015 completion). The islands will have room for -- quite literally -- millions of residents, with dozens of hotels, shopping districts, and attractions beyond belief.

Business Bay -- Several of the towers in this development would be remarkable anywhere but Dubai; however, the staggering size of Business Bay is what makes it hard to take in. The 9.2-kilometer area hosts more than 230 buildings and towers arranged around an artificial lake and canals; it's essentially an entire city in its own right. Some buildings are already finished and occupied; the rest are scheduled for completion through 2010.

Dubailand -- It's hard to wrap your mind around the enormous scope of Dubailand, as it's on the scale of building a Disney World scale project in one sustained burst. Really it's much larger even than that, as several other projects noted on this list -- Bawadi Dubai, City of Arabia, Dubai Sports City, the Mall of Arabia, and the Dubai Snowdome, among many others -- are technically part of Dubailand. Carved from over 50 square miles of desert, Dubailand is divided among six "zones" or "worlds" catering to various interests, like retail, theme parks, "eco-tourism" in entirely false ecologies, etc. Some individual attractions are already finished, with others coming online regularly between now and (scheduled) final completion by 2018.

Dubai Sports City -- A $4 billion fiefdom of Dubailand dedicated to the sporting life, Dubai Sports City "sports" a variety of apartments, hotels, and retail centers arranged around a number of fields, arenas, and other such venues. The centerpiece is a 60,000-seat outdoor stadium suitable for several games. The attached golf course is opening now, along with some of the residences; the entire complex is scheduled for 2010 completion.

Dubai World Central International Airport -- As if the enormous and incredibly busy Dubai International Airport were not enough, the entirely new and even larger Dubai World Central International Airport (officially known as Al Maktoum International Airport) is currently under construction. Ultimately, it will be the fourth largest airport in the world. It's still in the early stages for now, with only one runway and some infrastructure completed. Final completion and full operation is scheduled for 2017.

Hydropolis -- This amusing concept for an underwater hotel complex (220 suites) has run into construction problems and environmental issues. Originally shooting for a 2007 launch, planners now (optimistically) hope for a 2009 opening.

Trump International Hotel & Tower, Dubai -- Like a gilded moth to an extremely tacky flame, Donald Trump was inevitably drawn to build in Dubai. The Transformers-like hollow-core building will rise on the trunk of the Palm Jumeirah, and other than being generally swank will mostly trade on the Trump name. (Not to be outdone, Ivanka Trump has also announced her own Dubai development.) At last word, construction was scheduled for completion in 2008, but that seems highly doubtful to say the least.

Pentominium -- This building is just very, very tall. That's the takeaway here. It's not threatening the Burj Arab or anything, but it's still damned spiky at 1,693 feet (projected), which will make it the second-tallest all-residential building in the world. Pentominium = penthouse + condominium, get it? Completion is scheduled for 2011.

Dubai Metro -- Shockingly, a public works project! And one that Dubai desperately needs, since getting around in the city is pretty much a nightmare. The high-tech automated rail system will eventually be the longest driverless system in the world. The current phase consists of 35 kilometers of track, to be finished by 2009. The entire 75-kilometer system is scheduled for completion in 2010.

Dubai Snowdome -- One of the funnier dynamics at play in Dubai is that despite all the flash and sizzle, there's something of a shortage of ideas. Sure, one of the earliest "marvels" of the city was Ski Dubai, an indoor ski slope smack in the middle of the scorching desert. But why stop there? Why not an entire climate-controlled snowglobe? Hence the Snowdome, perhaps the most ostentatious jewel in the Dubailand complex. For a mere billion dollars, it will enclose 1.4 million square feet in alpine splendor sure to please any frosty supervillain. Late 2008 is the alleged completion date.