Dubai's $300m Cityland Mall on track for Q4 opening

Sixty percent of construction now completed while over 50% of retail units have been leased

Cityland Mall, which will be the world’s first nature-inspired shopping destination, remains on track for opening by the end of 2018, developers said on Tuesday.

In terms of construction, 60 percent of the $300 million project has been completed as of February while the leasing of the mall has also made considerable progress with over 50 percent of retail spaces committed.

Construction work for the Carrefour hypermarket is nearly complete and it will be ready for handover on or before end of March, a statement said, adding that it will be the largest hypermarket in the Dubailand area.

Construction work for the two major entertainment anchors - VOX Cinemas and Fabyland are progressing at a fast pace and will also be ready for handover within the next 6-8 weeks, the statement said.

By the end of Q2, the site will be open for most of the mall tenants to come in and commence their fit-out works.

Cityland Group, the company behind the project, said the landscaping contract for Central Park which is an integral part of the mall has been awarded to Miracle Garden Landscaping, which runs Dubai Miracle Garden and Dubai Butterfly Garden.

The 200,000 sq ft Central Park will provide a sensory experience for shoppers and has been designed to accommodate 7,000 shoppers at a time in its vast expanse.

Cityland Mall will have 350 stores built around six continent-themed pavilions.

Fahimuddin Sharfuddin, CEO, Cityland Group, said: “With consistent progress on both the construction and leasing side, we look forward to launching Cityland Mall to the public during the fourth quarter of this year and add a unique dimension in terms of retail to the UAE market.

"We have received strong interest from retailers and we are working to conclude the leasing activities by adding an additional 30 percent of leased retail space by year-end. We anticipate the balance of the retail area to be fully committed by end of Q1 2019.”