Dubai Municipality has widened permitted uses in Al Satwa, with new floor allowances by road type and incentives for plots of 1,000 square metres or more.
Dubai Municipality has updated Al Satwa’s planning regulations, the authority said on Sunday, permitting apartments on plots along internal roads and a ground floor plus eight residential floors on qualifying plots of 1,000 square metres or more.
The changes affect landowners, developers and investors in the area, who can apply for the service through the Build in Dubai Platform.
The municipality said the update allows a wider range of residential and commercial uses, depending on a plot’s location and characteristics.
Plots along internal roads can now hold a ground floor and two floors of residential apartments. That replaces the previous planning framework, which primarily permitted attached villas.
Plots along external roads get higher-density options, including a commercial ground floor with two or three floors of residential apartments. The number of floors depends on the location and the applicable planning requirements.
The rules also add incentives for larger sites. They apply to plots of 1,000 square metres or more, whether a plot already meets that size or reaches it by consolidating two or more plots.
Owners who consolidate can include the access lanes between the plots, subject to the approved procedures and requirements.
Plots that meet the criteria are eligible for a ground floor and eight floors of residential apartments, with a floor area ratio of up to 3.5.
The municipality said the incentive is meant to encourage smaller plots to be combined into larger sites better suited to integrated development.
Eng. Mansour Al Rais, Director of the Executive Planning Department at Dubai Municipality, said the incentives for plot consolidation are intended to give landowners and investors “greater flexibility to redevelop their properties and make more efficient use of available land”.
He said the approach would also take into account the area’s existing urban character and the requirements of future growth.
As part of the review, the municipality coordinated with the relevant service authorities to assess infrastructure and traffic requirements. It said this is meant to align planning requirements with the provision of infrastructure and essential services.
The Dubai Media Office carried the same details, adding that the update aims to improve land use efficiency and the area’s investment appeal. A start date and any fees were not published.
The municipality’s services list includes several routes relevant to checking a plot. A unified site plan request gives a plot’s borders, land tenure, zoning, land use, floors, setback and parking.
A “To Whom it May Concern” certificate on plot status, for loans and grants, is issued within 1 working day.
A copy of the approved master plan for major urban and development projects, or its approved changes, is available within 3 working days of application. A separate service covers applying for a planning permit under special planning criteria.
