SINCE the launch of the landmark Durrat Arriyadh development project in early 2007, construction work has continued apace at its prime location north of Riyadh to create one of the kingdom’s largest and most prestigious real estate projects. The first phase of the residential landmark, which aims to set a benchmark for lifestyle and living in the capital city area, was unveiled earlier this year.

Representing an investment of $1 billion for the development of the 3.5 million-sq-m site area, Durrat Arriyadh will eventually become a community containing more than 843 plots of land with world-class recreation areas, schools, clinics as well as a five-star hotel and resort. The project is said to blend the past, present and the future, adding a unique touch to Riyadh city, by reaching back to the early origins of the desert city of Riyadh – reflected in the derivation of its name ar-Riyath or ‘the gardens’.

Durrat Arriyadh Real Estate Development Company is developing the upscale project to provide a community suburb near the capital where people can enjoy everything they need, all in one natural location. The development company is a subsidiary of Dallah Albaraka, a leading conglomerate and one of the largest companies in the Middle East.
As the pace of development accelerates, Durrat Arriyadh will become the location of choice for increasing numbers of investors with many of the first home-owners taking occupation of their signature villas and looking to benefit from the city’s first gated community and array of lifestyle benefits.
Durrat Arriyadh is located in the central heartland of what will eventually become Riyadh’s first northern suburb some 40 km directly north of the city close to Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Humanitarian City near Banban and a few kilometres from the main Qassim highway.

All the integral elements of this new residential ‘desert’ suburb with an anticipated community of 12,000 will live in the sweeping landscaped area featuring wadis, lakes, water features, channels, greened areas and lawns, rocks and dunes as well as carefully selected flowers, shrubs and trees appropriate to the terrain. About 70 per cent of the project area is dedicated to landscaping and greenery and only 30 per cent for residential purposes. It is also the first city that has adopted smart technology, represented in more than 40 km of fibre-optic network to connect all villas.
Durrat Arriyadh incorporates the finest elements of masterplanning, design and architecture and includes the latest engineering and environmental systems to conserve and recycle water including underground irrigation and potable water tanks. All properties have spectacular views of parkland and recreational areas with all plots approached by wide roadways.
The contemporary design of the housing units and infrastructure focuses on preserving the traditions of privacy and security for Saudi households whilst, at the same time, enabling neighbours to get acquainted through the open public areas and developing the community.

Investors in the project are adopting a unique ownership system that enables owners to enjoy living in a high-class suburb. The system is also seeking to develop appropriate ideas on how to manage the community whilst maintaining the objectives for which the project was started, including the recreational facilities and public areas as well as maintenance, operation and security aspects.
Saudi Arabia’s housing sector is certainly one of the most buoyant and confident markets in the region with increasing demand for upscale developments such as Durrat Arriyadh. The metropolitan area of Riyadh is expanding fast with a population now exceeding five million and the city moving northwards. There are increasingly high expectations from affluent Saudi and international families for quality residential developments providing lifestyle, amenities and tranquillity in the relatively cooler and more rural climate of the northern suburb.

Durrat Arriyadh general manager Engineer Hamza Mohsen Alattas explains that the project will include everything from the residential community and landscaped areas through to the five-star hotel, fitness centres, tennis courts, schools, play areas and mosques.
“Launching Durrat Arriyadh is an important development in the real estate market in Saudi Arabia. I believe that it will be a step beyond the traditional approaches that have been applied in real estate development over many years,” says Alattas.
He adds that Durrat Arriyadh is an opportunity for people to move beyond the more traditional styles of housing and to enjoy new and unprecedented benefits in real estate investment.
After sketches of the masterplanning and design of the project had been approved by the Riyadh Municipality, the construction work started on the site for the general infrastructure including excavation and asphalting works.
“The project satisfies the need of home owners to own a residential unit that combines tranquillity and a quality lifestyle with the very top level of residential services and amenities that are typically available in modern cities.
“I am very proud of Durrat Arriyadh as it represents the combination of many new ideas in terms of the masterplanning of a new community in the northern corridor of Riyadh that includes rigorous environmentally-sustainable design elements. It will also include state-of-the-art fibre-optic technology with smart houses with high-speed internet, and IP television and telephony systems. Durrat Arriyadh is having a huge impact and taking a leading position in terms of a new real estate development approach to urban living as well as providing great opportunities for home owners to invest in the project.”
The project is taking a qualitative lead as a new standard for real estate and community development reflecting all aspects of the masterplanning, architecture, engineering and design right through to the facilities planning, all of which are world-class.
Durrat Arriyadh is increasingly becoming a magnet for a new approach to urban living and what families are looking for in terms of lifestyle and community urban living. About 85 per cent of all the land is sold already as are almost half of the villas, which range in architectural styles and plot areas. The project is being built to the most exacting environmental and architecture standards and eventually there will be a total of 843 housing units available in a site area that includes more than 70 per cent as a truly landscaped area,” says Alattas.

Alattas was brought into the Durrat Arriyadh project in 2006, having been appointed for this key position resulting from his wide experience and professional background in planning and development in the public and private sectors.
A dynamic personality, Alattas is a graduate of King Saud University where he was awarded a top-class degree in architectural engineering and began his fast-track career at Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA) in the Diplomatic Quarter. “I spent seven years in the ADA from 1986 and was closely involved in the detailed work of planning, design and research for the Diplomatic Quarter, developing traffic plans and the commercial corridor north of Riyadh,” he adds. Alattas then moved to Arriyadh Development Company in 1993 where he was design manager for Altameer Centre involving high-level masterplanning with the private sector and working alongside international consultants. He then became the director of studies at the company, involved with feasibility studies and the required technical, marketing and financial studies for various developments.

Following a period with one of Saudi Arabia’s largest engineering consultancy firms, Alattas joined the first multi-national environmental group in the kingdom specialising in waste management and environmental training and consultancy.
In Durrat Arriyadh, the latest design and engineering systems for the public spaces comprising the wadis and landscaped areas are applied. This also involves the detailed selection of the flowers, shrubs and trees and the applications of the latest technologies for primary and secondary irrigation systems to ensure the environmental requirements are met for the total land area.
All infrastructure works for the project is reported to have been completed in a record time, and as per the latest standards in building high-end residential developments. The electricity network for various components has also been completed including transmission stations, low and medium-voltage cables, streetlighting and lighting of residential units powered through an electrical transmission station with a capacity of 120 MW. The drainage work has included an integrated network with lifting stations, manholes and connection to the units.
Durrat Arriyadh Real Estate Development Company recently signed a memorandum of agreement for the initial phases of the construction of a new five-star hotel and resort estimated at between $100 million and $120 million with Al Khozama Management Company (AKMC). The luxury five-star hotel will include villas, guestrooms, swimming pools, spa and sport facilities as well as facilities for conferences and meetings.

Earlier this year, Saudi Binladin Group, Durrat Arriyadh Development Company and Dallah Albaraka unveiled the ambitious residential development which involves the first-phase construction of 252 impressive housing units with the development company working alongside the main contractor, PMC.
There are a range of properties with Emerald Villas having an Andalusian geometrical style designed to combine Eastern and Western civilisations in the form of a unique architectural concept.
The Emerald Villas are characterised by the simplicity of the design and the large interfacing arcs and external red bricks redolent of the Islamic history blended with Spanish architecture.
Privacy and security for the Saudi families is implicit as all the villas overlook the inner recreational and park areas with plot areas ranging from 1,200 to 1,600 sq m. Villas consist of four bedrooms and eight bathrooms as well as a spacious balcony plus servants quarters and facilities. When completed, Durrat Arriyadh will be home to select residents, living a unique lifestyle with schools, playgrounds, mosques and shops, all set in rolling parkland with panoramic views over the central garden and the Thumamah mountains beyond. And with temperatures typically about four degrees cooler than the built-up city, the location will be ideal for recreation and relaxation.
By offering families an opportunity to live in a secure, peaceful and rural location with minimal traffic away from the city but within a short 30-minute drive, Durrat Arriyadh is setting another benchmark for lifestyle and living in Riyadh.