Omniyat Properties, the real estate development arm of Almasa Holdings, has launched its first two projects – worth Dh850 million ($231.6 million) – since it made its debut at the end of last year.

The projects involve developing two high-rise office towers offering a total of 700,000 sq ft of prime freehold office space as well as 25,000 sq ft of prime retail space in the Business Bay district of Dubai, on Sheikh Zayed Road. 
Speaking at a press conference to announce the launch of the company’s debut projects, Mehdi Amjad, president and CEO of Omniyat Properties, said that the two developments will cater to various market segments and offer two different types of office space, for the upper segment and the middle segment.
The first project, One Business Bay, is a 30-storey tower with a unique design, which resembles a diamond sticking out of the ground. It will offer grade A office space in what is considered the best location of the entire development
Amjad said the building, designed by creative and upcoming German architects Kling Consult, enjoyed unparalleled views of the Sheikh Zayed Road and Jumeirah Beach on one side, and the Business Bay on the other. 
Ehab Shouly, senior vice president and marketing director of Omniyat Properties, said that the design of Omniyat’s first project was a tribute to its holding company Almasa Holdings. “Almasa means diamond in Arabic and we designed the building in a shape of a diamond sticking out of the ground,” he explained.
Another design element which reflects Almasa’s and Omniyat’s creative and out-of-the-box approach to business, is the “nose” of the building which sticks out of the body mass of the building. The nose consists of three floors that are physically pushed out of the building’s mass, creating a gap through the building.
Dubai-based Omniyat aims to combine its mother company’s two core areas of activity to create the most technologically-advanced properties in the Middle East region.
“We have taken a completely new approach to property development. We are combining our expertise in technology and real estate to create unique state-of-the-art buildings, not just in terms of design but also in terms of high-tech features, such as robotics and voice control, among others,” Shouly said.
The Dh507-million One Business Bay, which will enjoy Omniyat’s high-tech facilities, has three under-ground basement parking levels, and five floors of podium parking, giving it a total over 1,000 parking spaces. Construction has already begun and the tower will be completed in the first quarter of 2008.
Omniyat’s second project, Bayswater, is a 25-story scissor-shaped office tower located on a water-facing plot in the Business Bay. The building was designed by leading Dubai-based architects Dubarch. Its unique design is an optical illusion that makes it appear to consist of two slim towers side by side, forming the shape of the letter X.
The building will enjoy more than 875 parking bays spread over two basement floors and four podium floors, giving it one of the highest ratios of parking spaces to office space in the area. The building will have two penthouse office floors, one with a terrace and a limited number of waterfront loft-style offices.
Construction of Bayswater, with a value of Dh345 million, will begin in May and is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2008. Bayswater is a mid-market segment targeted at medium-sized companies which want a premium address and office location but at a lower price than Grade-A offices, says Omniyat Properties.