30 Emiratis selected to redesign 10 parks in Dubai

Dubai - Brand Dubai and Dubai Municipality said the selected participants include 10 architects, 10 interior designers and 10 event planners

A total of 10 public parks in Dubai will be redesigned as part of a redevelopment project, authorities announced on Sunday.

Brand Dubai, the creative arm of the Government of Dubai Media Office (GDMO), and Dubai Municipality, also announced that 30 individuals from the Emirati creative community have been chosen to participate in the project. The participants were chosen after an evaluation of over 100 submissions from the community for designs of public park elements and concepts for community events.

Revealing details at an event, Brand Dubai and Dubai Municipality said the selected participants include 10 architects, 10 interior designers and 10 event planners, most of whom are fresh graduates and young professionals. The participants were chosen based on their portfolio of work and their CVs.

Parks located in the residential areas of Al Mizhar 1, Muhaisnah 3, Al Barsha 2, Al Quoz 1, Al Warqa’a 2, Nad Al Sheba 4, Al Twar 3, Oud Al Muteena 2, Al Warqa’a 4 and Umm Suqeim 2 will be redesigned as part of the project. The new park designs will cover urban seating, children’s playgrounds, jogging tracks, landscaping and other elements of the park in addition to concepts for community events or activities.

Brand Dubai and Dubai Municipality recently invited the participation of Emirati creatives and design and event professionals with the aim of promoting community participation in the redevelopment of parks. Submissions were invited for designs that can integrate environment-friendly materials and innovative modern building methods that can revitalise parks and help attract more visitors.

The joint project falls within the framework of Dubai’s drive to transform itself into the world’s best city to live in, and the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan unveiled earlier this year by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to create a roadmap for sustainable urban development in the emirate.

Asem Abdulrazzaq Al Qassim, acting director of Executive Planning Department, Dubai Municipality, said: “The initiative, which supports the vision of making Dubai the world’s best place to live in, stems from the strong priority we place on developing green spaces in the emirate. Public green spaces are critical to enhancing the wellbeing, sustainability and livability of cities and bring diverse other social and environmental benefits. We are sure that the participants selected from the community to contribute to the project will help bring new dimensions of creativity and excellence to the project, which will see multidisciplinary teams working on transforming the parks.”

Shaima Al Suwaidi, city branding manager, Brand Dubai, said: “The Emirati professionals chosen to participate in the redesign project reflect Dubai’s dynamic young creative talent pool which is bursting with ideas and energy. Supporting their participation in the project is part of our efforts to advance the Dubai leadership’s goal of investing in their development and growth and involving the community in urban redevelopment projects. The participants will have the opportunity to contribute to generating breakthrough concepts that can enrich these parks while also meeting the unique needs of the local community. Over the coming weeks, we will be working closely with them to further refine ideas for transforming Dubai’s public parks into more engaging and sustainable public spaces. Brand Dubai will be offering the participants a co-working space in GDMO to use while working on this project over the next two months.”

• Dubai