Arcadis, a leading global design and consultancy firm, has successfully helped to deliver Doha Festival City, one of the largest leisure, entertainment, and retail destinations in Qatar and the Middle East.

The flagship development, which officially opens today, is a project that Arcadis has been proud to work on over the last six years, the company said.

Doha Festival City is a stunning mixed-use development that will be home to more than 500 retail units, including leading international and local brands. It incorporates Qatar’s first Ikea store, full-sized Monoprix hypermarket, Ace hardware store, and a range of entertainment options including a snow park, Angry Birds and Virtuocity theme parks, and an 18-screen Vox 4D cinema complex. It will be an attractive destination for residents and tourists, and an integral part of the local community.

In 2011, Arcadis was appointed by Bawabat Al Shamal Real Estate Company (Basrec), the owner and developer of Doha Festival City, to provide cost and commercial management services on the development. From the outset, the team’s market-leading benchmark data and cost modelling tools enabled them to provide accurate estimates, and ensure that the design put forward was efficient and one that could meet the returns expected by investors in the business plan, said Arcadis.

"Throughout the construction period, the Arcadis team managed change requests from over 500 tenants and in each case, provided timely cost estimates that enabled the client to make informed decisions on spend.  A two-stage procurement process was also implemented to allow an early works contract to be let, which meant the client could start work ahead of an anticipated increase in construction costs in the Qatar market," it said.

Kareem Shamma, CEO of Basrec, said: “The official opening of Doha Festival City is a proud moment for all of the parties that have supported the scheme over the last six years. Throughout this period, the Arcadis team has consistently provided excellent cost and commercial management advice. This has enabled us to deliver a world-class development that’s already exceeding the expectations of our visitors, tenants and investors.”

Jack Overkamp, Qatar managing director, Arcadis, added: “The opening of Doha Festival City is another important milestone in Qatar’s incredible journey. Arcadis is proud to have been involved on a scheme that’s helping to improve the quality of life in Doha, by providing the city’s growing population with access to first-class leisure, retail and entertainment facilities.”

Arcadis has worked on a large number of retail and mixed-use developments across the Middle East including City Walk, Mall of the Emirates and Mirdif City Centre in Dubai, the Al Wahda shopping mall in Abu Dhabi and Muscat City Centre in Oman, amongst many others. - TradeArabia News Service