When completed in the autumn of 1997, The Metropolitan Palace Hotel will be the tallest building on Dubai’s will be the tallest building on Dubai’s Al Maktoum Street. This elegant tower will be a symbol of traditional Arabian hospitality and reflect the enterprise of one of the Emirates leading companies.
The marble and granite exterior of the building, draws its inspiration from Art Deco, the prominent decorative art style of the period 1910-30 which was characterized by precise and boldly delineated geometric motifs, shapes and strong colours that give a feeling of Mediterranean warmth to the whole fabric of the structure.
Three floors have been given over to each of the main themes of the interior to reflect the distinct difference between the Arabian, Far Eastern and European aspects of the architectural design, giving the guest a pleasantly different experience each time they visit the hotel.
The hotel will have an executive floor equipped with state of the art communications equipment that will ease the difficulties a busy executive usually experiences when away from his home office. The fully staffed business centre with access to Internet and an exclusive butler service are just some of the added features that will make a stay at the new hotel attractive for busy executive.
With more than half the work already complete, Suheil Al Rayes, project manager for the main contractor, Al Habtoor Engineering LLC, estimates that the project is ahead of the construction schedule by two weeks. “The pace of working has been fantastic,” he says. “Normally the construction of a building such as this takes almost double the estimated period for completion due to the complexities involved, bur Al Habtoor Engineering has a reputation for completing landmark jobs on time.”
With everything on track, come the autumn, there will be a new distinctive landmark on Maktoum Street proudly flying the Dubai National Investment Company’s flag, marking the latest achievement of the Al Habtoor Group.