The latest masterplan for Dubai Design District (d3) has been planned to avoid traffic congestion, with the community designed to accommodate about 60,000 people across 15,000 units.
Developer Meraas last week revealed the project's masterplan to transform Dubai's creative district into a sprawling, canal-lined neighbourhood with a "pedestrian-first spine" to encourage people to walk all year round.
It is to include several residential projects, alongside commercial, entertainment, education and healthcare offerings.
The idea is to create an "integrated" community, Khalid Al Malik, chief executive of Dubai Holding Real Estate, the parent company of Meraas, said on Thursday.
"If you live in such a destination in the future, you really don't need to leave the space," he said in a media briefing. "You will have everything close to yourself, even community requirements, family requirements will be addressed ... we will have hospitals, we will have community centres, we will have walkability spaces for your health."
The masterplan, which spans about 1.67 square kilometres of land, includes the Design Line, a central path suitable for walking and cycling, connecting the five zones within d3. The areas will be shaded, enabling people to walk even during summer, Mr Al Malik said.
"We have guidelines for [energy] efficiencies in regard to the buildings, power, energy ... [and] the movement of cars within the masterplan itself – we will try to reduce it to the max in a manner that we don't have a lot of traffic in that area," he said.
It is being built in a way that would "allow people to go from one place to the other by a bicycle or by [walking]", he added.
Traffic congestion has become a key challenge in Dubai amid the surge in its population. The emirate's population reached four million in 2024, double the number of people living in the city 15 years ago.
The UAE said in November that it plans to spend Dh170 billion ($46 billion) on transport and road projects over the next five years to ease traffic congestion.
Prices and affordability
Residential projects announced so far in the d3 masterplan include Design Quarter, Atelis and The Edit.
Construction of Design Quarter is under way, with progress at 16.2 per cent, the company said. The project offers one to three-bedroom units. Prices start at Dh1.87 million, according to Meraas' website.
Located along the Creekside, Atelis will include one to four-bedroom residences, sky villas and exclusive five-bedroom penthouses. Prices begin at Dh2.1 million, according to the listing on the company's website.
Meanwhile, The Edit, which includes three waterfront towers, will have one to four-bedroom apartments and penthouses with amenities such as a cinema room, sky lounges and pools. The price for a one-bedroom unit starts at Dh2 million.
Mr Al Malik said the project was focused on the luxury market, in line with the prices demanded by the area. "The further you go towards the north and in busy areas of the city, prices go up. The more you go towards the south, prices go down," he said.
With the masterplan also offering a range of unit sizes, it offers a "good option for the people who want to have kind of different categories of these investments for themselves", he said. So far demand has been "healthy", he added.
In terms of project completion, Mr Al Malik declined to provide details of any timelines.
"With long-term projects, we take our time in accordance to the situation surrounding us, for example, economically speaking, how the market is, if you go to the demand and supply – how that is, and we go also to the matters related with authorities, the infrastructure, all of those factors actually have an impact on the timeline of the project," he said.
The executive also declined to reveal any investment details about the project.
The overall masterplan consists of five areas: the Creekside – which offers direct connection to the Dubai Creek; Design HQ – which will offer residential, retail and dining around offices; Soho – the cultural hub with performance venue d3 Bowl; Sanctuary – which will feature a large sports park, a mangrove park and an observation deck overlooking the Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary; and Mindspace, with galleries, studios and loft-style spaces.
