Lusail

Lusail City
مدينة لوسيل
Country Qatar
Municipality Al Daayen
Area
 • Total 38 km2 (15 sq mi)
Population
 • Estimate () 250,000 (planned)
Website www.lusail.com

Lusail is a planned city in Qatar, located on the coast, in the northern part of the municipality of Al Daayen. Lusail is located about 23 km north of the city centre of Doha, just north of the West Bay Lagoon, on over 35 km² and will eventually have a population of up to 250,000 people.[1]

It is planned to have marinas, residential areas, island resorts, commercial districts, luxury shopping and leisure facilities, and a golf course community, man made islands and several entertainment districts. Construction is still ongoing. Development is being carried out by the state-controlled developer Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company along with Parsons Corporation and Dorsch-Gruppe.

It is one of the proposed venues for the Qatar 2022 World Cup. [2]

History

Ongoing construction in Lusail

In 1908, J.G. Lorimer recorded Lusail in his Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf. He wrote:[3]

A village on the east coast of Qatar about 15 miles north of Dohah: the principal residence at the present time of Shaikh Jasim, the head of the Al Thani family of Qatar. About 500 yards inland of the place is Jabal Lusail, a rocky hillock of some height which forms a landmark well known to mariners. On the summit of Jabal Lusail is a double-storeyed tower which can be seen from several miles inland; and at the foot of the hill are three wells, one on the north and two on the west side; the water of these is extremely brackish. The village of Lusail consists of about 50 substantial stone and mud houses of Hamaidat and 2 or 3 of Ma'adhid, the latter being personal retainers of the Shaikh. To the village belong 9 pearl boats, 2 other sea-going vessels, and 3 fishing boats. Animals of transport are 20 horses and 70 camels. The house of the Shaikh stands about 200 yards to the south of the village: it was built about 1901 and is a four-sided, high-walled building of stone and plaster, adjoined by a few yards and out-houses and by a small mosque. By courtesy it is called a fort, but it contains no guns.

In an earlier 1904 transcript of Lorimer's Gazeetteer, he remarks that Sheikh Jassim first settled in Lusail in 1903 with a few allied tribes.[4]

Plans for the development of Lusail City were first announced in 2005.[5] After a cabinet resolution was passed in 2002, Lusail along with its suburbs of Al Kharayej and Jabal Thuaileb became the first areas of Qatar where foreigners could own real estate.[6] In December 2013, Qatari Diar announced that more than 80% of the plots in Lusail have been purchased.[7] It was stated in April 2018 that over 80% of the city's infrastructure projects were completed. At the same time, it was reiterated that the city had a projected capacity of 250,000 residents, 190,000 office workers and 60,000 retail workers.[8]

Geography

Two nearby settlements to the south, Al Kharayej and Jabal Thuaileb, have been incorporated into Lusail as standalone districts. A planned industrial area known as Energy City is also being constructed in Lusail.[7] Located to the north of the city are a number of abandoned fishing villages.[9]

Districts

The following is a list of some the prominent districts located in Lusail:[10]

  • Entertainment City
  • Entertainment Island
  • Energy City
  • Golf district
  • Fox Hills (also known as Jabal Thuaileb)
  • Marina district
  • Qetaifan Island North
  • Qetaifan Island South
  • Al Kharayej Towers
  • Media City
  • Al Erka district
  • Lusail Plaza

Fox Hills (Jabal Thuaileb)

Boats docked in Lusail's Marina district

Development of Fox Hills as a residential district was commenced in 2006.[11] In 2013, officials claimed that it would receive its first inhabitants for its under-development residential complexes in 2014.[12]

In 2015, the community was said to accommodate 9,200 apartments ranging from 5 to 7 stories, with all buildings comprising roughly 2 million square meters of Jebel Thuaileb's 1.8 square kilometer area. Many of the buildings were constructed with traditional architectural elements in order to represent Qatari heritage. Most major infrastructure projects for electricity, water and streets were completed the same year.[13]

Qetaifan Island North

Primarily, Qetaifan Island North will consist of tourist attractions such as water parks and hotels.[14]

Qetaifan Island South

Qetaifan Island South is composed of three islands. Prospective luxury villas, a marina waterfront and marketplaces will be built here.[14]

Lusail Plaza

At the heart of the city is Lusail Plaza. The most prominent feature will be four major towers which overlook the plaza. This area is meant to host large public events attended by several thousands of people. It is under consideration as a fan zone for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[14]

Energy City

First launched in 2006, Energy City is meant to be a major business hub for the country's oil and gas industry. The International Mercantile Exchange, a trading platform for energy, will be centered in the district. Microsoft was said to be assisting in developing the technology infrastructure.[15] In July 2013, CEO of Energy City Hesham Al Emadi revealed that, as a result of many requests for office space by non energy-related companies, the city will be converted to a mixed-use facility.[16]

Entertainment City

A designated entertainment district, Entertainment City will be divided into five districts. Place Vendome is a major mall being constructed in the city, and will feature a canal which runs the length of the mall, an amusement park and a cinema complex.[14]

Entertainment Island

This district will be host to an under-development large-scale museum.[14]

Sports

Lusail Sports Arena

The planned Lusail Iconic Stadium, with a capacity of 80,000+ people, will host the opening and final matches of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[17] The stadium's design is inspired from the sail of a traditional dhow as the city will be located north of Doha on the eastern coast, which is a historic focal point of pearling vessels. After the FIFA World Cup, the stadium will be used to host other sporting and cultural events.[18] The architects are MANICA Architecture and Foster and Partners. [19]

Lusail Sports Arena is another sporting venue in the city and hosted matches of the 2015 World Men's Handball Championship. Constructed at a cost of $318 million, it has a capacity of 15,300 spectators and opened its doors in 2012.[20]

Located just outside the city is the Losail International Circuit, which has hosted the Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix every year since 2004. Since 2007 it has been the opening round of the MotoGP world championship, and in 2008 floodlights were installed to the facility, making it the only race on the calendar to be held at night.

Industry

Aerial view of industries at Lusail

Numerous non-energy related companies are also headquartered in Lusail. Hotel operator and developer Katara Hospitality is based in the city,[21] as is Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company and its subsidiaries,[22] such as Lusail Real Estate Development Company[23] and utilities company Marafeq Qatar.[24] Qatari Diar was responsible for launching the Lusail City Development Project in 2005.[25]

The Lusail Industrial Area hosts many construction companies. In the Lusail Ready-Mix Batching Plant Zone, two ready-mix batching plants are maintained by Qatar Alpha Beton Ready Mix,[26] one ready-mix batching plant is maintained by SMEET,[27] REDCO owns a precast plant,[28] Qatar Concrete has 1 ready-mix batching plant,[29] and HBK ReMIX operates a ready-mix factory.[30]

Education

As part of Lusail's master plan, the city is ultimately set to contain 36 schools with a capacity for 26,000 students. Upwards of 75,000 square meters has already been reserved for school buildings by the Lusail City Real Estate Development Company; these schools are expected to be commissioned by 2019.[31]

Infrastructure

Beachside view of construction in Lusail

Utilities

A network of gas pipelines will transport synthetic natural gas to the city. Being distributed by a gas pipeline that has a length of upwards of 150 km², up to 28,000 m3/hr of natural gas will be fed to the pipeline by a gas farm. In regards to power stations, 66 kV and 11 kV substations will be constructed. The latter will be built underground in specialized structures. Portions of the 66 kV substations connecting from mainland Lusail to the Qetaifan Islands are planned to be set up under the sea bed and run through utility tunnels.[32]

Green spaces

Numerous public parks are housed throughout Lusail's districts. In the Fox Hills district, for example, there are 33 parks which provide around 10.3 hectares of green space. One of the largest parks is called Crescent Parks. This park includes a forested area, playgrounds, water features, bike trails, kiosks, monuments and several sports fields. In addition, there are several small-to-mid sized parks known as pocket gardens which contain less facilities than parks. There are 18 of these situated in the Marina district, occupying an overall space of more than 26,000 square meters. Also in the Marina district are roughly 3 km of promenades along the waterfront.[33]

Transport

Transport in Lusail is facilitated by six main roads which connect to Doha in the south, connect to Lusail Highway in the east and north and connect to Al Khor Highway in the west.[34]

Doha Metro's Red Line will run through Lusail once completed, providing its residents with convenient access to Doha and Al Wakrah.[35] Qatar Rail is involved in the construction of the Lusail LRT. First designed in August 2007, the Lusail LRT will be spread over a distance of 33.1 km, of which 10.4 km will be underground and the remaining 22.7 km will be overground. The network will connect to the Doha Metro Red Line through the Lusail Main Station and the Lusal Marina Station.[36]

Housing & accommodation

Once fully completed, Lusail is expected to house 250,000 residents. Future developments will see this capacity potentially increase to 450,000. Currently, there are 22 hotels operating or under construction in the city.[37]

Katara Hospitality stated that they would be constructing a luxury resort comprising a water park and a four-star hotel on the Qetaifan Island North in October 2017.[38] Another project by Katara Hospitality, 'Katara Towers', was launched in October 2012 at a cost of QR 2.2 billion. Equipped with two hotels, high-end apartments and other facilities, the project was scrapped after a short time. It was revealed by the company that they had relaunched the project in August 2017 and were estimating a completion date of 2020.[39]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "The Project". Lusail City. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  2. ↑ Saraiva, Alexia. "Get To Know The 8 2022 Qatar World Cup Stadiums". ArchDaily.
  3. ↑ "'Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf. Vol. II. Geographical and Statistical. J G Lorimer. 1908' [1112] (1197/2084)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 6 July 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  4. ↑ "'Persian Gulf Gazetteer, Part II: Geographical and descriptive materials, Section II: Western Side of the Gulf' [54v] (108/280)". Qatar Digital Library. Retrieved 21 August 2018.
  5. ↑ "Billion-dollar real estate project launched in Qatar". nzherald.co.nz. Reuters. 25 December 2005. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  6. ↑ Murad Sawalha (March 2017). "Owning Property in Qatar: Options for Foreign Investors". Tamimi & Co. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  7. 1 2 "80% of plots in Lusail sold: Qatari Diar". Qatar Tribune. 12 December 2013. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  8. ↑ "'More than 80% of Lusail City's infrastructure projects completed'". Gulf Times. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  9. ↑ "Al Daayen Municipality: Vision and Development Strategy" (PDF). Ministry of Municipality and Environment. December 2017. p. 37. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  10. ↑ "Lusail" (PDF). Enterprise Ireland. March 2013. p. 6. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  11. ↑ "' جبل ثعيلب' و7 أبراج.. .. جديد المشاريع العمرانية في قطر" (in Arabic). Al Qabas. 30 April 2006. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  12. ↑ "منطقة "جبل ثعيلب" بمدينة لوسيل تستقبل سكانها العام المقبل" (in Arabic). Al Sharq. 11 December 2013. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  13. ↑ ""لوسيل" تعلن انتهاء البنية التحتية في جبل ثعيلب" (in Arabic). Al Arab. 31 January 2015. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 "Attractions". Lusail City. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  15. ↑ "Energy City Qatar boost for Mid-East". The Star Online. 17 April 2006. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  16. ↑ "Energy City Qatar will be mixed-use facility". Arabian Industry. ITP Media Group. 30 July 2013. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  17. ↑ Brandon Griggs (19 August 2014). "2022 World Cup city rises in the desert". CNN. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  18. ↑ "Lusail Iconic Stadium". Design Build Network. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  19. ↑ Saraiva, Alexia. "Get To Know The 8 2022 Qatar World Cup Stadiums". ArchDaily.
  20. ↑ "Lusail Multipurpose Hall". Stadia Magazine. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  21. ↑ "Contact us". Katara Hospitality. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  22. ↑ "Company Overview of Qatari Diar". Bloomberg. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  23. ↑ "Company Overview of Lusail Real Estate Development Company W.L.L." Bloomberg. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  24. ↑ Adam Lane (23 October 2012). "Marafeq Qatar Finishes Lusail DC Plants". Utilities Middle East. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  25. ↑ "Billion-dollar real estate project launched in Qatar". nzherald.co.nz. Reuters. 25 December 2005. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  26. ↑ "About us". Qatar Alpha Beton Ready Mix (QAB). Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  27. ↑ "Contact". SMEET. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  28. ↑ "Precast Concrete & Hollowcore". Redco International. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  29. ↑ "Company Profile" (PDF). Qatar Concrete Company. 2010. p. 53. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  30. ↑ "Equipment". Hamad Bin Khalid Ready-Mix Company. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  31. ↑ "Lusail City set to build 36 schools for 26,000 pupils". Qatar Tribune. 6 April 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  32. ↑ "Utilities". Lusail City. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  33. ↑ "Landscape". Lusail City. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  34. ↑ "Infrastructure". Lusail City. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  35. ↑ "Al Daayen Municipality: Vision and Development Strategy" (PDF). Ministry of Municipality and Environment. December 2017. p. 32. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  36. ↑ "Lusail Light Rail Transit". Railway Technology. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  37. ↑ "Overview". Lusail City. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  38. ↑ "New water park and resort hotel planned for Lusail island". Doha News. 6 October 2016. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  39. ↑ "Qatar restarts ambitious Katara Towers project in Lusail City". Doha News. 25 August 2017. Retrieved 29 May 2018.

Coordinates: 25°30′N 51°29′E / 25.500°N 51.483°E / 25.500; 51.483

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