Shurooq (Sharjah Investment and Development Authority) was set up in 2009 by His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council Ruler of Sharjah, to be the driving force behind the transformation of Sharjah.
Its comprehensive development includes the House of Wisdom, the ‘future library’ designed by British architectural design and engineering firm, Foster + Partners and four luxury eco-retreats under the Mysk by Shaza’s Sharjah Collection brand.
Al Faya Lodge
One of these, Al Faya Lodge, received international acclaim for transforming two single-storey, stone-built structures from the 1960s, previously occupied as a clinic and grocery store, into a contemporary boutique hotel and restaurant; with the addition of a newly -built saltwater spa building.
ANARCHITECT, the UAE-based studio behind the project, believes the project pioneers the region’s architectural movement towards adaptive reuse of heritage buildings and structures, using local vernacular and contextual choice of materials as a starting point for the architectural discourse.
Shurooq roadshow
As well as its hospitality projects, other examples of the emirate’s architecture have been showcased internationally, with a roadshow travelling to Moscow and St. Petersburg in Russia during October 2021. Al Suhub rest area, Shees Park, the Khorfakkan Beach development, Souq Sharq and the Khorfakkan Amphitheatre, were displayed to Russian audiences as part of a tour by Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority.
They represent ongoing development projects launched under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of the emirate.
Khorfakkan Amphitheatre
Of these, one of the newest landmarks welcomed by the emirate is Khorfakkan Amphitheatre, at the foot of Al Sayed Mountain facing the Khorfakkan beach.
The magnificent 190,000 sq ft Roman-style amphitheatre was inaugurated by the Ruler of Sharjah in December 2020, after being planned, designed and engineered by Jordan-based firm Dar Al Omran.
Heart of Sharjah
In addition to building new attractions, Sharjah’s future also speaks to preserving and restoring its architectural heritage. Seeking to reflect on what Sharjah was like over half a century ago, the Heart of Sharjah project promises to restore and revamp the city’s traditional areas to create a tourist and trade destination with contemporary artistic touches.
Scheduled for completion in 2025, the first of five phases is already underway, and Shurooq has set up a joint committee of governmental and private bodies to oversee the implementation of this first phase.
Buildings on Bank Street
A controversial part of the project involves the demolition of the striking 1970s buildings lining Sharjah’s ‘Bank Street’, designed by Spanish architects Tecnica y Proyectos.
The new book ‘Building Sharjah’ (Birkhäuser, 2021) notes two of the Córdoba Buildings were demolished in 2016. Plans to raze the remaining 22 buildings have been put on hold, though more demolitions are expected, says the title, which is the result of an intensive five-year research project to collect and reconstruct the city’s modern landscape, co-edited by Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi and architectural historian Todd Reisz.
The Flying Saucer
International design press has reported that Sharjah Art Foundation (SAF) has campaigned to preserve this area and has already purchased numerous historical buildings across the emirate, including an ice factory, a cinema and Sharjah’s famous concrete flying-saucer restaurant, which it reopened in September 2020 as an arts venue.
Designed and constructed in the 1970s by an unknown architect, the extra-terrestrial building is described by Mona El Mousfy, architecture consultant for the SAF, as a “unique and relatively simple silhouette defined by a circular footprint topped by a central circular dome.”
It’s the perfect symbol for what Sharjah has become: quirky, eye-catching, a paean to the past but always looking forward with the promise of exciting plans to come.
