URBAN OASIS

Ras al Khaimah, UAE
Inside Outside

Ras Al Khaimah is one of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates, bordering Oman, and has been continuously occupied for the past 7,000 years. Of the population, only 31% are Emirati citizens, with the rest being foreigners, including a large labor force from other Gulf states. The city is divided into two parts by the Khour Ras Al Khaimah, an inlet of the Persian Gulf. In 2006, Inside Outside partnered with OMA to create a masterplan for the city that highlights the diversity of desert plant life, and the existing changes in topography, from deep canyons to densely planted urban forests. The proposal highlights the contradictions facing the continued development of Ras Al Khaimah, in which continued urban development threatens the scenery and desert environment that Ras Al Khaimah’s residents pride themselves on. The proposed plan is based on the existing topography, and creates a gradient of vegetation species from lush in the lowest zones to semi-arid and canyon gardens in the highest topography in the area. A system of irrigation across the city follows the zones, while paths cut through the differing conditions made by combinations of topography and irrigation regimes. The masterplan uses a 20 minute rule, in which pedestrians are brought between places of interest in 20 minutes or less, while vehicular roads have different speed limits to see the plantings from different perspectives and at different speeds. The landscape plan is based around OMA’s proposal for compact urbanization, which preserves the scenic arid environment.

2006 - 2007
284 acres
21 feet above sea level

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