Talk about Real Estate "Froth" - Check Out Dubai!!! (PICS)

[El Pinko]

Dubai in 1990 prior to the craziness



The same street in 2003



The madness. Dubai is said to currently have 15-25% of all the world's cranes.


For more pics of Dubai's construction explosion, visit link:

http://www.dubai-architecture.info/DUB-GAL1.htm

[bdamomma]

1. Dubai, is booming.

website address not working.

check this out:

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0701/feature3/gallery1.html

[IDemo]

6. Well, you HAVE to have an indoor ski facility when it's 120° outside

[fascisthunter]

11. All That Won't Have an Effect on Global Warming for Sure

:sarcasm:

[snappyturtle]

9. Last night on National Geographic the husband and I watched

a program about the building of the Burj -------- hotel.....unreal! One of the big muckety mucks said that Dubai has realized that oil will not last forever so they are making Dubai THE tourist capital of the world....interesting. Thanks for the link!

[EvolveOrConvolve]

13. Was that the documentary about the Barg Dubai (sp?)

The building that will be 165 stories tall and include a mall, a hotel designed by Ralph Lauren and many smaller (60-90 story) buildings?

If so, that building is absolutely amazing and disgusting at the same time. While 75% of the citizens live in abject poverty, the ruling class is building these huge structures like the Barg Dubai and the indoor ski hill. We see the huge sparkling buildings in pictures without seeing the hundreds of thousands living in nearly prehistoric conditions not so far away. The situation is not that far removed from the pharaohs and their pyramids.

[WritersBlock]

33. This doesn't make sense (not your post, but the whole building thing)

If they've realized that oil won't last forever, how are they expecting the tourists and trade to get to Dubai? Nuclear-powered cruise ships? How will they sustain these buildings and this lifestyle? (The self-sustaining city aside; I'm talking about Dubai and its fake islands, etc.) They'll need to get supplies in on a massive scale; where's the fuel for the cargo aircraft and/or shipping going to come from?

Or do they know something we don't? Say maybe about alternative energy that's going to be readily available to them when it's needed?

Been wondering this since I first read about this building spree.

[Nictuku]

2. Wow...

I checked that link, that is really an eye-opener.

What the heck is going on over there? Are there even enough people to populate it? Where do they get their workers?

[El Pinko]

4. They're mostly Southeast Asian

Apparently they are kept in horrid conditions.

Everything there is built for the rich. It's hard to imagine that there are enough millionaires to patronize all the luxury hotels, amusement parks, resorts there...

[JCMach1]

26. Horrid is a bit over the top... but there are big labor

issues here.

[A HERETIC I AM]

5. The situation with the workforce is a bad one, to say the least.

There has been much written about how the workers, who are from all over the middle east, India and Pakistan, are being treated and their living conditions. While they make more than they could at home, they don't make enough to get them into the middle class. The construction boom in Dubai has been largely done on the backs of underpaid, immigrant labor.

[calimary]

21. I have a friend who just got back from Qatar, where evidently much the same

construction boom is underway.

He said the finest materials are used - some really beautiful tiles and marbles and draperies and paint and fixtures etc, but the workmanship is awful. He said he sees it all over the outside where finishing is just not there, caulking is all sloppy and gloppy, tile work is uneven and carelessly done. He said they'll hang the finest drapes on the windows BEFORE they paint, so you see this gorgeous fabric with paint along the edges and the drywall behind it bare! He said if it's this slip-shod where you can see, it's frightening to imagine what substandard workmanship lurks underneath, where you can't see. Thought-provoking, to say the least!

AND those palm-shaped man-made islands, he said, were all made of rocks and sand. Sand doesn't compact. Evidently there's going to be a monumental effort to fight the effects of natural erosion - from the merciless sun and heat, and tides and water exposure. God, I hope they know what they're doing. In such hog-wild situations, it's awfully easy to cut corners. He said people were working 12-hour shifts, round-the-clock. He went over at the behest of his parents who are over there as engineers and construction people. He said they're very well-paid, and get two-week vacations every, what? Ten or 12 weeks (I forgot already - so much he talked about, hearing it is as overwhelming as it is looking at these pictures).

[originalpckelly]

3. OMG! That's so cool and beautiful...personally...

it's a lot better than the shitty desert before.

Looks like a city out of Star Wars or something.

[clyrc]

7. I live close to Dubai

I've lived here 4 and a half years, and it has changed massively since I first got here. It's hard to imagine the kind of money floating around in this country, it's just astonishing. It's true that the area is being built by horribly exploited workers, which I hate. But I love it here, for several reasons. It's one of the most exciting places I've ever lived, even looking beyond the undeniable Disneyland feel the place has. It's such a multi-cultural area to live in, and I love that.

[bdamomma]

14. It looks like a beautiful place.

[Initech]

8. Absolutely amazing.

[warrior1]

10. Dubai man made islands

oops sorry.

[monmouth]

12. I believe Tiger Wood is building a golf course there also...n/t

[mvccd1000]

15. It's an amazing place - even the 2003 picture is long out-of-date.

Many more buildings in that picture now. The Emirates stewardesses stay in a hotel on there on Sheik Zayed Road, too. (Crowne Plaza?) :)

I'll be there again in two weeks.

[El Pinko]

17. Yeah, I couldn't get the newer pic to work in the post.

They were a different kind of URL code than the 1st two.

[SoCalDem]

16. ugly before..ugly now.. n/t

[MrSlayer]

18. Wow. Just wow.

I'd love to work on some of those projects. Of course I seriously doubt they use Union Labor there.

[Kitty Herder]

19. Wow, that totally reminds me of the Las Vegas strip.

Especially the total waste of resources and the insanity of building a city like that in a barren desert.

[El Pinko]

20. Well, there are no green forests in the UAR or the Emirate of Dubai...

...so I don't think they had a lot of choice in the matter. Dubai has long been an important port and shipping terminal, so it's not like they built a city there apropos of nothing (as opposed to Las Vegas, which exists where it does mostly because of gambling laws and its proximity to Los Angeles...)

[Kitty Herder]

22. That doesn't excuse the wastefulness. nt

[mvccd1000]

23. True - I'm sure they would feel better living in mud huts. nt

[Kitty Herder]

25. I'm sure the poor people who built it and work there live in very poor conditions.

Just like Las Vegas. Ever walked a block or two away from the strip?

[mvccd1000]

30. Yes (to Vegas), and I've also driven all over Dubai.

The people who build it DO live in conditions we would consider appalling, but the conditions are apparently no worse (and sometimes better) than they have at home.

People are still lining up to do that work over there, too. I work with an Indian, and his brother waited for months to go over there for a job, in spite of the horror stories. He figured he could work there for a couple of years and come back and buy a home, setting himself up for life.

[JCMach1]

27. Not wasteful... there are using their petrol dollars to build a REAL economy

based on trade and tourism. So much so that oil hasn't been the biggest component of GDP for years.

This is very different from other countries in the region like Saudi Arabia...

[Kitty Herder]

29. If you think trade and tourism make for a wonderful economy, I take it you haven't worked

in that type of economy. You know, the kind where rich people stay in posh hotel rooms and eat in gourment restaurants while those who clean the hotel rooms and bus the tables live 10 people to a small apartment or even in tents.

[JCMach1]

31. Ummm... I am a Florida native and no that is not so pretty

However, when was the last time you herded camels or farmed dates in 45Cent. heat?

Tourism and trade sure beat the hell out of that!

[Kitty Herder]

32. You've gotta point there. nt

[JCMach1]

24. Bottom pic is also WAY old by Dubai standards

Behind the Emirates towers... those two pointy building on the right is where Burj Dubai, the tallest building in the world,is located. Also, there is a huge complex of high rise offices (dozens of towers) there called Business Bay.

[JCMach1]

28. Also for your consideration: Masdar City

In February, Masdar (which means "the source" in Arabic) will break ground on the six-square-kilometer city that its backers say will be the first zero-pollution, zero-waste city. The city will be capable of housing 47,500 people, who are scheduled to start moving there in 2009. Construction is expected to take 10 years.

The vision of the city, designed by Foster and Partners, is to be a model for sustainable architecture.

A solar-photovoltaic power plant will deliver energy to buildings. Builders also envision using solar canopies that provide shade, as well as power.

A vision of Masdar Institute of Science and Technology.
(Credit: Foster and Partners)

The city will be placed to take advantage of the cool sea breezes, while a perimeter wall around the entire city will protect buildings from the hot desert air and noise from the nearby Abu Dhabi airport.

No cars will be allowed in the city. People will get around through an electric light-rail system that will be linked to the center of Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates.

A desalination facility will be 80 percent more efficient than existing plants, and all wastewater will be purified and recycled to grow plants that could be used for biofuels... http://www.news.com/8301-11128_3-9853581-54.html

[NuttyFluffers]

34. holy shit! that's too cool!

even though i don't truly expect zero/zero Green perfection, it's a damn sight more than anything we've been doing here. and even if they get close and become viable it could be a revolution in urban architecture! it's like playing Sim City in the desert, and i really hope they can pull it off. wow, to think that the arab and muslim world could be the first to reach this milestone on such a level is stunning and wonderful. i guess it also could be an indictment against our american culture, too, but i'll not go there at the moment and focus on the positive.

[Eurobabe]

36. Hey JCMach!

How's everything? It's going to be 60F in Germany this weekend. There goes my snow. :(

[JCMach1]

37. Dust storm next two days!

It's last work day of the week though, so weekend is coming. :)

[Eurobabe]

42. Stay safe! I can't imagine

what being in a dust storm must be like. I don't think I want to know!!

[JCMach1]

43. Not romantic like the movies... much more an irritation

Just wind, lots of sand and dust in the air... Real hell for people with allergies and asthma.

[Eurobabe]

35. I saw it in December, it is NUTS!

The traffic into Dubai City starts around 4am, because they bus all the workers in from outlying places. The roads/infrastructure have not kept pace with the building boom. They are building a subway system, but I hear that is at least 3-5 years out?

It's a clusterfuck. It took us 45 minutes to go 6 kilometers in lunchtime traffic. We could have walked quicker! On the return we took a water taxi.

[JCMach1]

38. Metro will open within the year

[DS1]

39. US Corporations are moving there for the tax-shelter

and Dubai are happy to accomodate.

[mvccd1000]

40. Which ones?

Just curious if you're talking about Halliburton; I read that they're moving their HQ to Dubai from Houston, but they will remain incorporated in Delaware, just as they were when the HQ was in Texas.

Wouldn't surprise me to see a lot of others going, too, though. There's a LOT of work going on. I read that 20% of all the construction cranes in the world are in use in Dubai right now.

[blm]

41. The Capitol of New World Order - as planned.

.

[JCMach1]

44. No, something far more interesting... the first megalopolis of the 21st century