Site Location and Site Conditions:
The site is a narrow, irregularly shaped strip of land — indeed a prime location — situated between the rocky, barren hills to the south and Al Bahri Road, which follows the sweeping curve of the Mutrah Corniche to the north. Al Bahri Road forms part of the 4-kilometer ceremonial route linking the Royal Al Alam Palace with Mutrah Old Town. Every foreign guest or diplomat visiting the palace travels along this road, and our development — extending approximately 600 meters along its edge — will inevitably become a prominent feature for those being escorted along the road to meet His Majesty the Sultan.

Furthermore, due to its prominent position, the development will be visible from miles away to passengers arriving at the port aboard cruise ships.

Currently, approximately 25% of the site is occupied by steep, rocky terrain and will require substantial earthworks that would involve the use of heavy machinery to clear it up and bring it to the same level as the remainder of the site.

Design Intention and Client’s Goals:
Due to its prime location and close proximity to Muttrah Old Town, the site is particularly well suited for a mixed-use development comprising high-end residential apartments offering unobstructed sea views, alongside attractive commercial spaces for small businesses. In a broader sense, the project seeks integration into three of the four Pillars of the government initiative OMAN VISION 2040 that are relevant to our project, namely: People & Society, Economy & Development and Sustainable Environment.

The client also envisioned the project as a hub for cultural, business and recreational activities for both locals and tourists with a nearly 24 hours life

cycle — incorporating exhibition galleries, artisan workshops, and venues for music and other performances, complemented by a series of intimate urban spaces accessible to the general public.

A shaded, north-facing promenade stretching some 600 meters along the main road together with smaller internal alleys and galleries, lined with numerous small shops, cafés, and restaurants, become an integral part of local life. It offers a welcoming retreat from the scorching sun, being particularly cosy in the early morning hours and in the evening, when the rocky hills behind embrace the development nestling in front of them with their long cooling shadows.

A water feature has been integrated at ground level, meandering through the promenade and acting as a guiding line and a contemporary interpretation of the traditional aflaj — those narrow and shallow irrigation canals that form an important part of Oman’s rich cultural heritage. In practical terms for the project, the aflaj is conceived as a feature designed to spark the interest of tourists, introducing them to this 5,000-year-old tradition. It is intended to be one of the first stories visitors encounter when they set foot in Muttrah, while also serving as a reminder of how precious this natural resource is—something we far too often take for granted.

The color palette of the buildings is based on three primary materials: locally-sourced igneous rock, known as ophiolite, which allows the buildings to blend organically with their surroundings, much like the historic Muttrah forts that appear to rise directly from the rocky landscape; and contrasting white finishes — pure matte white paint for the shading structures and white stucco for the upper residential floors — creating a distinct contextual reference to the building traditional of the region.

Design Challenges:
To provide visual separation from road traffic, maximize views toward the Corniche and the sea beyond, and also to reduce the cost of excavating a full underground parking level, the client requested that the development be raised 1.5 meters above street level, creating a podium that unifies the site and defines its overall architectural appearance. Ventilating a 25,000 sq.m. underground parking level can be tricky and costly, and raising the development by half a level significantly improved natural cross-ventilation throughout the parking area by allowing the sea breeze in, and thus helped reduce operational costs.

The plot’s irregular, curvilinear and, in some areas very narrow shape, posed certain challenges in accommodating the required number of car parking spaces and ensuring efficient vehicular circulation at Level -01. This was addressed by subdividing the front buildings into smaller modules, each module being served by evenly spaced circulation cores to rationalize movement and orientation throughout the parking level.

Another challenge was to develop an efficient strategy for minimising vertical circulation while separating private access to the residential units from public circulation, without creating an excessive number of staircases. On one hand, stairs were needed to connect the apartments to the podium and parking levels; on the other, additional stairs and escalators were required to link two levels of commercial spaces to the parking areas.

Our design evolved through three main iterations, reflecting changes in the client’s programmatic requirements: initially, the addition of extra housing units; subsequently, a cultural center; and finally, a hotel for the building located south of the main plaza.