The news that the developer Meraas is to build a Dh2 billion mall, three times the size of Dragon Mart, in just 30 months, certainly raised a few eyebrows in the halls of Dubai's exhibition centre as Cityscape moved into its final day.
With project delays and cancellations spreading across the UAE, a healthy dose of urgency can almost make one nostalgic for the old days, when concepts translated into bricks and mortar at speeds that would make US or European developers' eyes water.
That said, there are few countries that understand doing things quickly as well as China, and a place where fishing villages have become sprawling urban metropolises in decades. It is also a country that understands supply and demand, with citizens looking for their rung on the property ladder and a burgeoning real estate market that grows by the day. All the more important is the fact that Meraas's new venture has Chinese cash behind it, a fact that will reassure anybody who may have been sceptical about the successful financing — or indeed, economic case — for a mega-mall project in a city with more than its fair share of mega-malls. Say what you like about the Chinese government, but it is a canny investor, and unlikely to throw billions into a project that makes no sense.
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