New project offers affordable homes to Omanis in Barka
Times News Service
MUSCAT: A new housing project, offering over 1,000 units, was inaugurated in Barka yesterday.
The project provides residents with houses, parks, parking spaces, a shopping centre, as well as a mosque. It will feature 1,050 housing units split between villas, townhouses, and apartments.
These will be reserved for affordable purchase by Omanis who are currently on a government waiting list for land.
Regarding the project, Talal Al Rahbi, Steering Committee Chairman and Deputy SecretaryGeneral for the Supreme Council for Planning, said, “While owning property in these projects is currently only open to Omanis, they are free to rent them to expats. And if the general regulations change regarding expat ownership, they will automatically change for these projects, as well.”
Al Rahbi agreed that this project will create employment opportunities beyond construction.
Due to its various facilities, companies will be encouraged to open shops in its shopping centres. The project’s opening event took place under the patronage of Sheikh Saif Mohammad Al Shabibi, Minister of Housing, in which he said, “These projects are not a replacement for our system of allocating land to citizens. You are able to wait for land if you choose to. This is simply a method where you can substitute that land for a home here.”
“This project is a leap that aims to improve the quality of life for Omanis by creating these housing projects. They are available to Omanis who are eligible to receive land from the Ministry of Housing.”
Engineer Siham Ahmed Al Harthy, Director General of Real Estate Development at the ministry, said there are advantages to obtaining a house in this way.
“The first is that this is much more cost-effective than building your own home, because it is a larger project. Also, we guarantee the quality of every housing unit.
Finally, this will become a central neighbourhood, complete with parks and entertainment, as 60 per cent of the area is leisure and 40 per cent is housing,” she told the Times of Oman.
According to Al Harthy, the project should take four years to complete, though it will be unveiled in stages.
“Steps for this project began with forming the steering committee, then with administrative decisions that culminated in choosing Adrak Developers LLC to implement this project.
“There has been a decision to make this project the first of others. Land has been designated around the country to create other housing projects, such as this one around the Sultanate,” she added.