Community & Project Landscape Design

A community project starts from the regulations, not the drawing

The core difference between villa garden design and community design is that the second is governed by written requirements before it starts. The competent authority varies by emirate and location: Dubai Municipality for general areas, Dubai Development Authority (DDA) for its zones, Trakhees for Jafza and Nakheel areas, and Abu Dhabi Municipality with Estidama requirements. Each has different rules on green-coverage ratios, irrigation types and acceptable specifications.

Drawing before reviewing those requirements produces submissions that get rejected, and redesign costs far more time than the original review would have.

Common areas are designed around movement

Pedestrian paths, service routes, emergency access and parking are one network. A footpath crossing a service route means the maintenance vehicle drives over paving and breaks it within a season. A court without clear access becomes dead space.

• Paths wide enough for two people side by side, shaded where possible
• Service routes built to take maintenance vehicle loads
• BBQ and seating areas kept away from unit windows
• Shaded parking that lowers vehicle temperature and adds to calculated green coverage

Central irrigation and consumption metering

In communities, central irrigation with sub-meters per zone is not a luxury — it is the only way to know which zone consumes more than expected, which is the first sign of a leak or fault. Without sub-meters, a leak runs for months until it surfaces.

Drainage is fixed from the outset

UAE rain is infrequent but intense — a site without designed drainage floods in a single day. The plan sets surface falls, drain positions and soakaway zones, and ties them into the site network. It is part of the package, not an optional extra.

The bill of quantities must be neutral

If the project goes to tender, specifications must let more than one supplier price them — a technical specification (resistance, thickness, grading), not a product name. A specification naming a single brand kills competition and raises the price.