End of an era as Dubai's Jebel Ali Village to be redeveloped


Gillian Duncan
  • English
  • Arabic

Residents of Jebel Ali Village, one of Dubai’s oldest residential communities, have been told they have 12 months to vacate their homes ahead of a planned redevelopment.

Property developer Nakheel, the owner of the village and all of the villas in it, said it will redevelop the community to “preserve and enhance its longevity for many more generations to come”.

Nakheel said it will share its plans for the village in “due course”.

Long-term residents have said they are sad at being told to leave the area they call home.

We recognise Jebel Ali Village’s importance to Dubai’s history and its residents and, for this reason, have taken the decision to redevelop the community to preserve and enhance its longevity
Nakheel Properties

“I am devastated,” said Amanda James, who has lived in the development on and off since the 1980s when her family moved from Saudi Arabia to the UAE when she was a child.

She has lived elsewhere in Dubai and even bought in The Meadows, an Emaar community nearby, at one point. But she has always returned to the village.

“I think when you have been here a long time you are still looking for a little glimpse of when you arrived in Dubai,” said the 53-year-old Briton.

“I also have a beautiful view of the Marina. I actually have a little frame on my front wall. I have the Jebel Ali frame.

“It’s quiet, it’s always had a good community feel. It’s a little bit out of town so it’s not busy. It’s peaceful. And you can walk your dogs, your children are safe to wander around.”

The village, which has about 290 homes, was built in the 1970s in a patch of desert, 30km away from the nearest developed area.

Residents of Jebel Ali said they adore the area for its community feel. Anna Nielsen for The National
Residents of Jebel Ali said they adore the area for its community feel. Anna Nielsen for The National

Originally for the British and Dutch staff at the nearby Jebel Ali Port, over the years it became hugely popular with people from other nationalities, too.

When it opened, six years after the founding of the UAE, the old Abu Dhabi road was a two-lane road used by taxis, lorries and cars. Camels walked around the village freely.

It was closed for five years for refurbishment, reopening in 2013, when Ms James returned.

The village's much-loved Jebel Ali Club, one of Dubai’s oldest and most treasured venues, was revamped and opened to the public in 2017.

But some of the houses have fallen into disrepair again, just as they had before the development was refurbished in 2008.

Ms James said her own home is in good shape, aside from being in need of "a lick of paint". She and her husband have invested their own money in it, with the aim to stay long-term, even installing a new kitchen.

“We did that because the kitchen was awful and I didn’t want to live with a semi-functional kitchen, which is basically what it was when they repurposed it last time,” she said.

Resident Monique Buitendag and her husband, Harold, who received their notice to vacate by October 2022 on Thursday, have also carried out extensive renovations to their rented home.

She said the family, from South Africa, moved in May and spent Dh150,000 on the property after being assured the villas would not be demolished any time soon.

"We re-tiled everything. We re-did the kitchen. We painted the entire house. We put down grass, added trees, installed a water tank and so on," she said.

"The reason we moved here in the first place is because of the family community. We have a little daughter. My nanny is friends with about 20 other nannies. They have playgroups. It's a family community."

Both Ms Buitendag and Ms James understand they should by law be allowed to complete their existing contracts before the 12-month notice period to vacate applies.

“That’s my understanding of [my rights] and I was a legal secretary for years. I am more than prepared to go down the legal route," said Ms James.

“I know quite a few on the Facebook group are looking at getting legal advice,” she said.

A spokeswoman for Nakheel said the developer is complying with all legal requirements.

“We recognise Jebel Ali Village’s importance to Dubai’s history and its residents and, for this reason, have taken the decision to redevelop the community to preserve and enhance its longevity for many more generations to come,” she said.

“We have informed all tenants of this decision and are complying with all legal requirements. We are keen to help our tenants as best we can during the transition and have put in place a number of support services to make their relocation as smooth as possible.

“We will share details of our plans for Jebel Ali Village in due course.”

Barbie
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Green ambitions
  • Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
  • Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
  • Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
  • Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water 
The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
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MATCH INFO

Day 1 at Mount Maunganui

England 241-4

Denly 74, Stokes 67 not out, De Grandhomme 2-28

New Zealand 

Yet to bat

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PROFILE

Name: Enhance Fitness 

Year started: 2018 

Based: UAE 

Employees: 200 

Amount raised: $3m 

Investors: Global Ventures and angel investors 

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Director: Atul Manjrekar

Cast: Anil Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai, Rajkummar Rao, Pihu Sand

Rating: 2/5 

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

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Other ways to buy used products in the UAE

UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.

Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.

Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.

For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.

Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.

At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.

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The%20specs
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The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz C200 Coupe


Price, base: Dh201,153
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 204hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 300Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km

Copa del Rey final

Sevilla v Barcelona, Saturday, 11.30pm (UAE), match on Bein Sports

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Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

How to donate

Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

Price: From Dh1,700,000

Available: Now

THE BIO

Favourite book: ‘Purpose Driven Life’ by Rick Warren

Favourite travel destination: Switzerland

Hobbies: Travelling and following motivational speeches and speakers

Favourite place in UAE: Dubai Museum

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages. 

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INDIA'S%20TOP%20INFLUENCERS
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Updated: October 30, 2021, 11:14 AM`