Construction of the first residential phase of Masaar, Sharjah's woodland community project, is set to begin after two major contracts worth Dh460 million ($125m) were awarded. <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/megaprojects/2022/03/04/dh8-billion-sharjah-forested-community-megaproject-takes-shape/" target="_blank">The project</a> will have 4,000 villas and townhouses in eight gate districts, and a “green spine” of 50,000 trees. It will cover an area of 19 million square feet. A contact worth Dh228m was awarded by developer Arada to Kuwait’s Mohammed Abdulmohsen Al-Kharafi & Sons (Al-Kharafi) to build 142 villas in the Sendian district. A second contract worth Dh232m was won by Sharjah-based contractor Intermass to build the remaining 288 homes in the Sendian district. Arada said construction will begin immediately and work will take 14 months to complete. The entire Masaar master plan is expected to take seven years to complete, <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/property/arada-launches-2-2bn-masaar-project-in-sharjah-1.1156483" target="_blank">Arada said last year</a>. “These contracts are a key moment in Masaar’s journey to completion, and we have agreed [on] an accelerated construction programme with the contractor in order to deliver Sendian rapidly, efficiently and to an exceptional level of quality,” said Arada group chief executive Ahmed Alkhoshaibi. The area will also feature an experience centre that is set to open in June, which will include a children's adventure playground, a skate park, an outdoor amphitheatre and Zad, the popular food district already present within Arada’s sister community Aljada. In March, Arada awarded a Dh75m contract to Sharjah-based contractor Al Marwan General Contracting Company for infrastructure works at the central precinct and the buffer zone in Masaar. Containing thousands of trees, the buffer zone will feature a two professional looped cycling and jogging tracks, each 6.6 kilometres in length. A further Dh43 million contract for landscape works was awarded for the same areas in Masaar to Al Qalamoon Garden Designers, also based in Sharjah. Arada said all homes in the Sendian district are now sold out, while homes in Masaar’s second phase, Kaya, were put up for sale in October 2021. The developer will bring forward the launch of the third phase of the community to this quarter, “thanks to strong buyer demand”.
