Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
“Al Fay Park is specifically designed to provide both biological, environmental, and social benefits to Abu Dhabi,” states Rasmus Astrup, Design Principal and Partner in SLA.
Stig Lennart Andersson, Creative Director, and his team at the Copenhagen nature-based landscape architecture studio SLA, together with Parsons, have envisioned a new kind of urban nature park that has seen the light of day for client Abu Dhabi Department of Municipalities and Transport.
Gone are the water-consuming and soulless “Las Vegas landscapes” of the past.
Al Fay Park—a new 27,500 m2 public park in downtown Abu Dhabi that signals a new kind of Middle Eastern city development: Driven by inclusive nature rather than iconic buildings.
With its innovative biodiversity, microclimate, and social activities, Al Fay Park is a paradigm shift in how to design and implement nature in the dense megacities of the Middle East.
As the first biodiversity park in the UAE, Al Fay Park contains more than 2,000 native trees and bushes—including the national Ghaf trees that have been replanted from desert nurseries into the park—all specifically chosen to strengthen biodiversity for both planting and wildlife and to maximize natural cooling throughout the park.
The resulting microclimate reduces traffic noise and temperature and creates a distinct forest-like environment.
The specifically designed sloping entrances funnel the cooler southern breeze down into the park while local grasses and bushes reduce sand infiltration.
“The density of the trees, the soil design, the irrigation using solely recirculated water, and the sole use of native species not only ensure that the park has radically reduced its irrigation by 40 percent compared to conventional parks,” continues Astrup.
“The planting also attracts bees, pollinators, birds, and animals, providing a lush and lively atmosphere in the middle of Abu Dhabi—this is a park with a 100 percent birdsong guaranty!”
“Lastly, the microclimate design provides the best possible social ecosystem for play, sports, and leisure—making Al Fay Park both socially and climatically ‘the coolest place in town’.”
Benefitting from the optimized microclimate, Al Fay Park is buzzing with social activities such as multiple sports facilities, playgrounds, street fitness, climbing walls, minigolf, food trucks, and a host of informal outdoor seating areas.
Along the edge of the park, a winding Forest Track invites visitors to explore sensuously and “wild” nature experiences amongst the flowers and grasses and under the canopies.
The result is a park with authentic ecosystems and natural habitats for wildlife that also is an open invitation for all to explore nature, interact with each other and relax together in a peaceful, comfortable, and serene setting.
Benefitting from the optimized microclimate, Al Fay Park is buzzing with social activities such as multiple sports facilities, playgrounds, street fitness, climbing walls, minigolf, food trucks, and a host of informal outdoor seating areas.
Along the edge of the park, a winding Forest Track invites visitors to explore sensuous and ‘wild’ nature experiences amongst the flowers and grasses and under the canopies.
The result is a park with authentic ecosystems and natural habitats for wildlife that also is an open invitation for all to explore nature, interact with each other and relax together in a peaceful, comfortable, and serene setting.
All in all, Al Fay Park is the UAE’s first showcase of how to strengthen urban biodiversity while creating a cool, comfortable, and unique round-the-clock public realm for all residents and visitors to meet, play, and live.
Project: Al Fay Park
Architects: SLA
Architects of Record: Parsons
General Contractor: Barari
Client: Abu Dhabi Department of Municipalities and Transport
Photographers: Philip Handforth
