Tall Story: Colin Doyle on Dubai City Walk

Because height and community pull against each other. Abode2 records the six-floor cap as “unusual for Dubai” and ties the sense of community to it directly. Architectural styles differ slightly building to building, in natural stone, glass, aluminium and ceramic chosen for the region’s climate while keeping a contemporary European feel, and marble runs through the lobbies.

The pedestrian’s experience, in detail: bespoke lighting, patterned paving and deliberated landscaping, with sharp lines, a simple colour palette and limited groundcover. Canopied trees shade the boulevard and fragrant trees are used in the linear park and the smaller spaces. Cyclists get dedicated lanes, and traffic speed and flow are controlled by the placement of crossings.