Beirut Gate

Beirut Central District - Beirut, Lebanon


Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH)


http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/e21d3781.jpg



http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/Lebanon/BeirutGate.jpg

http://img460.imageshack.us/img460/2396/33ke.jpg

Beirut Gate project is launched

Beirut: Privately-owned Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) has launched a real estate project in central Beirut worth about $600 million.

Beirut Gate will include buildings housing luxury residential and business accomodation, ADIH chief executive officer Rashed Janahi told a news conference yesterday.

ADIH launched a $160 million private stock placement in January to finance the first phase of the project, including the initial cost of the land and master plan. The company said in January it expected the placement to offer a return on investment of 37.5 per cent over an 18 month period.

"The subscription attracted a great deal of interest from investors because they view Lebanon as one of the favourite investment destinations," Lebanon's official National News Agency quoted Janahi as saying.

He did not set a date for the implementation of the project, one of the biggest investments in central Beirut, which has been largely rebuilt after the 1975-1990 civil war.

Real estate developer Solidere, Lebanon's big-gest company, is the main contractor in the area.

Solidere chairman Nasser Chamaa told the conference that announcements about similar projects were expected soon, the agency reported without elaboration.

Gulf investors have been pouring some of their bumper profits from rising oil prices into Lebanon's real estate market.


http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/Lebanon/b5598ad5.jpg




Shares rebound at Beirut stock exchange
Monday, 3 April, 2006


Beirut, Lebanon - Solidere shares rebounded today as a result of the announcement on Saturday that two real estate projects , worth a total of $1.5 billion will soon be launched in the capital's downtown.

Solidere shares were up as expected. "A" shares closed at $ 22.29 and "B" shares closed at $ 22.35.

Most Bank shares were up too.
Banque Audi GDR was up and closed at $ 68.80
Bank of Beirut "listed shares" was unchanged at $ 13.05
Byblos Bank "listed shares" was up and closed at $ 2.85
Byblos Bank priority "listed shares" was up and closed at $ 2.60
BLOM Bank GDR was slightly up for the week and closed Friday at $ 80.00


HOLCIM Liban which is a cement manufacturer was also expected to go up as a result of the announcement on the new projects... was up almost 4 % and closed at $ 2.71.

The value of the shares traded was up at : $ 7.25 billion.

The Lebanese Pound (Lira) was unchanged at USD/LBP :1507.5

Volume of trade was up too. Number of shares traded today was 472,243 and Value $ 5,613,201

$1.5 billion boost for Beirut real estate investments

Solidere, the firm rebuilding downtown Beirut, announced Saturday that two real estate projects worth a total of $1.5 billion will soon be launched in the capital's prime location.

The announcement came during a Press conference to launch the second phase of the $600m Beirut Gate project, the downtown's largest development project managed by the Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH).

"I am happy to confirm that in the next few months, we will launch more projects of the same size or even bigger and which have already been signed by Solidere," said Solidere chairman and general director Nasser Shammaa.

"We are talking about investments of $1.5 Billion. They will be two projects, one of them of the size of this project and the other one bigger," he said.

Shammaa said more details on the projects will be disclosed "when they will be ready".

"Undoubtedly, these investments will revive economic activity in Lebanon. This asserts that investments in this area (downtown Beirut) of Lebanon still interest investors from around the world," he said.

Rashad Janahi, chief executive officer of ADIH, said the $160m private placement to fund the development of the first phase of Beirut Gate project was "successful".

He said the placement offer for the first phase of Beirut Gate is projected to offer a return on investment of 37.5 per cent over an 18-month period.

Beirut Gate comprises seven plots on 229,871 square feet and a built-up area of almost 1.9m square feet overlooking the landmark Martyrs Square at the heart of downtown Beirut.

The project will be a mixed-use commercial and residential area.

Sources: Beirut Stock Exchange, Ya Libnan, gulf-daily

Please post more renders if you have any.

This is one of the most exciting projects in Lebanon as Martyrs Square will be transformed!

Is that including that tower or is that another project?

Some renders:

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/Lebanon/c9be02de.jpg


Please post more if you have any.
This is one of the most exciting projects in Lebanon as Martyrs Square will be transformed!

This is not the Beirut Gate project, this was one of the many designs during the Martyr's Square competition. It got 2nd place.

^^ Are you sure? I thought I saw this in the pdf that was taken down...

Do you guys know if they've chosen what Martyr's square will look like? I've seen the pictures above, but I also keep finding this one, too.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h236/arzlubnan/bcd4.gif

^^ Well, that one looks alike as the one above.

Do you guys know if they've chosen what Martyr's square will look like? I've seen the pictures above, but I also keep finding this one, too.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h236/arzlubnan/bcd4.gif


^^ This one is very very old, whatever Beirut Gate actually looks like, that will be the new Martyrs Square.

Take a look at this site
http://www.adih.ae/materials/Beirut%20Gate%20SummaryE.pdf
http://www.adih.ae/materials/fvbgppm.pdf

Thanks Nadini, I knew I had seen that image in the summary (even if it is just a concept drawing). I'm glad the pdf is back up, Im going to compile all the renders and post them.

you welcome, here theres this picture I found, and it seems like the Beirut Gate started already. I believe the excavation u see in the bottom-middle left is part of Beirut Gate.
http://img469.imageshack.us/img469/7304/1320619658bb87551ebo9qd.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Here is another picture of buildings going up in Beirut
http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/8484/132061962b6a6d3d002o6si.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

^^ I just have to say you are awesome Nadini, these are amazing pics where did you find them? And yes it appears the digging has begun for a part of Beirut Gate...

Thank you so much!

That's not the Beirut Gate under construction. What you see there coming up on the left side is part of the Saifi Village II project.

Construction on the Beirut Gate will not start until sometime in the summer at the earliest.

That's not the Beirut Gate under construction. What you see there coming up on the left side is part of the Saifi Village II project.

Construction on the Beirut Gate will not start until sometime in the summer at the earliest.


Well that does make more sense now that I look at the renders (which arent very helpful), but Saifi Village II? It seems pretty small, why dont they just make it an extension of Village I?

Thanks again Lebanese Cedar, you seem to know everything...

Beirut Gate?

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/Lebanon/112280950oxTibw_ph.jpg

I don't believe this is the Beirut Gate, they won't ruin the Martyr Square with a highway. It will ruin the ''Freedom Square'' and we won't have a memory of March 14.

^^ No no Hani, this is not Martyrs Square. This is the already existing highway facing the square . ... or it is supposed to be, this render is confusing.

I don't recall seing a highway close to the search, I think it is a old render

If you look at the first pic Nadini posted, you can see the highway. Use the church as a refrence point.

Does anyone know, those of you who are in Lebanon now, if any digging has begun regarding this project? Updates would be great!

i dont know. is this the place right between the mosk and virgin mega store? or exactly where.

Beirut Gate?

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/Lebanon/112280950oxTibw_ph.jpg


this is not beirut gate...this saudi arabia i thing

this is not beirut gate...this saudi arabia i thing
As Beirut! mentioned, this is the Fouad Shehab highway in Beirut.

I think these images clarify this.
http://img467.imageshack.us/img467/3678/38359747lebanon2002098gw.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img371.imageshack.us/img371/9099/1514east1zz.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

question: what's gonna happen to the martyr statue if they're building that area up? plus, all the squares that beirut has are gorgeous and a terrible thing to see going to waste ... are they planning any new squares? (the size of martyr/freedom square i mean)

^^ The square is going to be reduced to its pre-war size. The statue will stay exactly where it is, it will just be surrounded by buildings like it was in the 1970s.

LOL you are kidding right? I dont know many churches in KSA...
they have a few i think. bcz my friend who is maronite said he goes church when he is there working.

but the photos nadini posted show that yes its in beirut. the church. and the other sites show that.
thanks nadini:)

that church is mar maroun in downtown

That church is an Armenian Catholic Church.

can somebody tell me what tower is being built in this beirut gate, or are all the towers actually the phoenician village?
(see, Im following the posts!)

The Beirut Gate and the phoenician village are seperate project i think there's only one tower in the beirut gate while the phoenician village is sort of like a cluster of towers source26!
cheers

so what does the tower look like?

The Beirut Gate renders are on the 1st page of this thread, the Phoenician Village renders are in the Levant Holding thread...2 separate projects.

I guess it is this tower, It looks great I cant wait for it to be completed!

http://img460.imageshack.us/img460/2396/33ke.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

^^ Where did you find this render? At this time I have no solid info though I will keep lookig...

Yes Nadini your right, I am also liking it even more when I take a look at the renderings everytime, there's something special about it!

Just wanted to post this render so that we'll be able to know how the tower of Beirut Gate will look like and its height comparing to the surrounding buildings.

http://img124.imageshack.us/img124/641/dscn07703vz.jpg

wow was this pic taken at the airport? i love the high-rise

that looks really nice. if it ends up looking like that rendering, then i'm happy. :)

did they begin the construction works?

wow that tower looks great!!! any idea of the height?

Nice pic (I love the spire), although I hope the tower is higher...

LeB-iT, yes it was taken at the airport.
Ramazzotti, yet they didn't start works.

About the height, from the render I count about 30 floors.

Interesting, it seems like the ugly cinema will not be demolished after all according to this render

http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/8200/xcvxcv3dh.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

From NYT article on Bernard Khoury:

Later, his proposal for a renovation of a late-1960's-era movie theater at the edge of Martyrs' Square, one of the city's busiest public spaces before the war, was accepted by Solidere but then put on hold after the assassination of Rafik Hariri, Lebanon's former prime minister, in February 2005. Paradoxically, the protests in Martyrs' Square that followed the assassination did not slow the rise of real-estate prices in the area, and the lot was sold to make way for a massive commercial development.


From this info, it seems it will be demolished ("to make way"), I dont know why they would want to incorporate it into BG.

I guess we would have to wait and see

LeB-iT, yes it was taken at the airport.
Ramazzotti, yet they didn't start works.

About the height, from the render I count about 30 floors.


what are they waiting for !?! lol

Hi all

I guess Beirut Gate will start soon but it will face a lot of competition from neighboring projects such as the Pheonician Village and Saifi Village II.

At the end it will all come down to the price per sq meter offered by the projects to the potential buyers.

What do you guys think?

Competition is never a bad thing BHRBHR.
And welcome to the forum :)

is there a website for Beirut Gate

what height and floors will be this tower?

what height and floors will be this tower?
Still no info is available about the tower's height.

Here is an interesting article on the "bubble" theater which is apparently supposed to be demolished to "make way" for Beirut Gate.



Bursting the Bubble
Story by Bethan Ryder

Before:
http://impressions-ba.com/images/2005/apr05/p040ARCHITECTURE01-00.jpg
After:
http://impressions-ba.com/images/2005/apr05/p041ARCHITECTURE01-00.jpg



Driving into Beirut from the airport, one of the first things you see is a hulking great concrete bubble. Stranded like a beached whale on asphalt, blackened by neglect and the long civil war that raged around it, it's an arresting sight. Although broken and pockmarked by bullets, this unusual edifice remains recognisable as one of the few surviving icons from Beirut's ‘golden age' of Modernist architecture. And yet, until very recently, it was destined for the wrecking ball.

Designed in 1965 by Lebanese architect Joseph Philippe Karam, the Beirut City Centre Building, aka the ‘bubble', ‘blob', or ‘egg', was built during the prosperous post-colonial days of the Lebanon republic. It originally housed a theatre and exhibition hall with six underground levels for shopping and parking. Today, beyond hosting illegal raves in the 1990s, it stands empty – a blot on an urban landscape virtually devoid of cultural institutions.

Solidere, a private real-estate company, announced the bubble's pending demolition in 2003, citing financial reasons. As a 6,000-square-metre chunk of real estate overlooking Martyr's Square in the desirable Downtown district, the site was worth some $40 million – a veritable gold mine, considered by Solidere too valuable to waste on a brutal architectural relic of the past.

Then, suddenly last year, Solidere U-turned and commissioned local architect Bernard Khoury to resuscitate the dormant carcass. It was to be reborn as an arts centre with a seven-year lease. So what made them change their minds? International opinion and its sheer symbolic appeal, says Khoury. “Many architects who toured the city with Solidere – guys like Philippe Starck, Jean Nouvel, Steven Holl – all asked, ‘What are you doing with that?' And so I was asked to come up with a temporary solution.”

The chain cigar-smoking, 35-year-old architect has achieved international acclaim for a clutch of entertainment venues completed over the past seven years in his native city. Architecture critics, hedonistic, moneyed Beirutis and cosmopolitan visitors adore his bunker-club B018 and the restaurants Yabani and Centrale. Most are intrigued by these unfamiliar-looking venues that seem like alien spacecraft plonked in the middle of an ever mutating city. Strangely though, none of these buildings has been built to last. “My projects are about an alternative exploitation,” he explains. “They have a limited life span. They are not developed in terms of total build-up area, but one day a developer with enough money will buy these plots and my projects will be gone. I used their temporary nature to my advantage.”

It's worth mentioning that creating challenging architecture runs in the family. Khoury's father, Khalil Khoury, is an eminent local architect who favoured experimental, expressionist Brutalist architecture. Although Khoury fi ls resides with his young family in his father's residential complex – the Manar beach resort north of Beirut city – few other examples of his father's work remain. “My father created some amazing things but many of them are being destroyed,” says Khoury, “because Beirut doesn't appreciate what it has yet.”



The rest of the article is irrelevent but if you are interested it can be found here:
http://impressions-ba.com/features.php?pageNum_Recordset1=6&totalRows_Recordset1=160&id_feature=10330

Here is an interesting article on the "bubble" theater which is apparently supposed to be demolished to "make way" for Beirut Gate.

It's not going to be demolished. I saw a new rendering of the Beirut Gate in a magazine that shows it part of the project. It will be restored and integrated within the project. Looks quite nice.

its every odd looking but diffrent

It's not going to be demolished. I saw a new rendering of the Beirut Gate in a magazine that shows it part of the project. It will be restored and integrated within the project. Looks quite nice.

HA! So I was right afterall!
I ask for bragging rights.... :)

I think it has been an issue they have kept on/off however I have seen the latest images and I think the it was removed.

nope its still there..unless it was demloished this past week

HA! So I was right afterall!
I ask for bragging rights.... :)


We still cant be sure about anything in this city! So my money is still on its demolition...

We still cant be sure about anything in this city! So my money is still on its demolition...

I saw new rendering of the Beirut Gate project, it's not going to be demolished. It's going to be renovated and incorporated as an events building.

^^ I guess I will have to give up hope then...

Could you please share this new render if possible?

And is it still going to be designed by Bernard Khoury?

Could you please share this new render if possible?

It was in an Economics magazine in a hotel, so I couldn't take it, so unfortunately I can't share it. Perhaps it will pop up on the internet soon.

And is it still going to be designed by Bernard Khoury?

No.

Thanks Lebanese Cedar for the info.

One thing convinced me that it won't be demolished is the fact that SOLIDERE did not demolish it years ago.

I dont think this diagram has been posted yet:

http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/7356/bguw1.jpg

good news :)

Gulf developer to start building $600-million Beirut complex

By Lysandra Ohrstrom
Daily Star staff
Saturday, October 14, 2006

http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/6764/1fe9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

BEIRUT: Construction of the $600-million Beirut Gate commercial and residential complex, one of the biggest planned developments in Lebanon's history, is expected to move forward close to schedule, proving the resiliency of the country's luxury real-estate market. The executive director of Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH), the company financing the eight-building complex near Martyrs Square, told reporters on Friday that master-plans will be submitted for approval to Solidere and the Order of Engineers and Architects within a week.

"Despite recent events we are right where we want to be and the project is still on target," said Nicholas Fraser, adding that the ADIH will be able to recoup the losses from the eight-week delay.

"The Beirut Gate will not only guarantee job creation, but will show the international community that Beirut is open for business," he said. To promote the Beirut Gate and encourage investors, ADIH is going on a publicity blitz throughout the Gulf and featuring the project at the MIPIN property convention in Cannes this year.

ADIH-commissioned French architect Christian de Portzamparc and US firm Aquitectonica are to design six of the eight buildings. Lebanese architect Nabil Gholam and the ERGA group will be responsible for the other two. A master plan for one of the plots has been approved by Solidere, said Fraser, and the four architects are meeting over the next two days to finalize the remaining seven designs.

Though ADIH's decision to go ahead with the development is a welcome sign of confidence in the Lebanese market, the Beirut Gate project has stoked a fair bit of controversy from the start because it includes the site of the Beirut City Center Building, better known as "the dome," an icon of 1960s "blob" architecture and an emblem of Beirut's modernist era. The former movie theater was slated for demolition in 2003, but saved in 2004 thanks to a rehabilitation scheme commissioned by Solidere and designed by Lebanese architect Bernard Khoury.

Ineke Zondag of ADIH said the dome would be demolished on Friday, but sources at Solidere said they were unaware of any plans to take down the building so soon. No demolition work was in evidence on the site itself.

In its master plan for the city center, Solidere has designated the site for cultural use, though whether or not such designations are actually legally binding remains an open question. The dome is included in some of ADIH's simulations of the completed Beirut Gate complex.

"It's being taken down and in a neighboring plot they will build a cultural space below ground as a substitute," Zondag said on behalf of Michael Lawrence, the managing director of real estate for ADIH.

Nasser Chama, the chairman of Solidere, endorsed the project at the news conference, saying it "underlines that Beirut's city center remains an attractive and profitable magnet for real-estate investment."

Fraser also insisted that a Solidere representative has attended each workshop to offer input on the final building plans.

The ADIH is one of a handful of high-profile GCC real-estate developers - including Damac Properties, which is building the $150-million La Residence by Ivana Trump - that immediately resumed work after the summer's hostilities.

Indeed, some new projects have been launched since the cease-fire went into effect. International Financial Advisers announced its purchase of a $13.5-million office building in Bab Idriss, and a Kuwaiti bank is in talks to purchase a $70 million plot in Solidere.

But others are less certain.

Levant Holdings, the Kuwaiti-Lebanese joint holding company in charge of the $1.1-billion Phoenicia Village complex, has returned money to its shareholders until the political situation stabilizes.

^^^^

WOW, finally some information released, thanks Libano.

Well it seems the Bubble will indeed be DEMOLISHED! However, the new rendering is confusing and I am still not convinced.


Though ADIH's decision to go ahead with the development is a welcome sign of confidence in the Lebanese market, the Beirut Gate project has stoked a fair bit of controversy from the start because it includes the site of the Beirut City Center Building, better known as "the dome," an icon of 1960s "blob" architecture and an emblem of Beirut's modernist era. The former movie theater was slated for demolition in 2003, but saved in 2004 thanks to a rehabilitation scheme commissioned by Solidere and designed by Lebanese architect Bernard Khoury.

Ineke Zondag of ADIH said the dome would be demolished on Friday, but sources at Solidere said they were unaware of any plans to take down the building so soon. No demolition work was in evidence on the site itself.

In its master plan for the city center, Solidere has designated the site for cultural use, though whether or not such designations are actually legally binding remains an open question. The dome is included in some of ADIH's simulations of the completed Beirut Gate complex.

"It's being taken down and in a neighboring plot they will build a cultural space below ground as a substitute," Zondag said on behalf of Michael Lawrence, the managing director of real estate for ADIH.

Gr8 news :)
we'll wait and see what REALLY will happen to the"DOME".

http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/115/beirutgate1ok8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/3892/beirutgate2zv2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/8903/beirutgate3pq4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Thanks Libano, but according to the article, Im not sure if all of those renders have been finalized...

Construction to begin on Beirut Gate

Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) today announced its US$600 million project in the centre of Beirut will go ahead, as four world-renowned architects arrive in the City to finalise the design master plan.

http://www.ameinfo.com/images/news/6/30626-MrRashadJanahi.jpg
Rashad Janahi, CEO of Abu Dhabi Investment House

The architects are in Beirut to take part in the final (of four) design workshops for Beirut Gate, which will be an integrated commercial and residential sea view project in the Beirut Central District, commonly known as Solidere.

The development will comprise eight plots spread over 21,448 square metres and a built-up area of 178,500 square metres overlooking the famous Martyrs' Square of Lebanon, downtown Beirut and the Mediterranean.

Announcing the project, Nicholas Fraser, ADIH's Executive Director of Real Estate said: 'We are excited that this project is ready to proceed and we are sure this development will provide a major boost for the people of Beirut and the economy of Lebanon.

'Beirut Gate will be an exceptional project and we are confident that it has long-term value, which will deliver healthy and sustained returns to investors.

'We have commissioned four world-class architects to undertake the development of the master plan-governed designs of the landmark buildings within Beirut Gate.

'French architect Christian de Potzempark, of New York's legendary LVMH towers fame; Arquitectonica, a highly-applauded US based architectural firm; Nabil Gholam, a popular Lebanese architect; and Erga Group, another sought-after Lebanese firm, are set to take Beirut Gate to a new level of architecture and design.'

Dr Nasser Chammaa, Chairman of Solidere, the company responsible for developing Beirut city centre, explained the importance of the development for Beirut and the economy of Lebanon.

He said: 'This massive project is an important display of confidence in Beirut and a huge boost for the economy of Lebanon and Beirut city centre.

'We are confident Beirut city centre reconstruction will remain an attractive and profitable magnet for real estate investment, and today's announcement underlines this.'

Beirut Gate is located near Foch-Allenby, an area famed for its historic and diversified architecture, blending Ottoman, Italian and French styles, Place de L'Etoile, and the main shopping district. The Beirut Central District, where the project is located, is a renovated historic area developed by Societe Libanaise Pour Le Development et La Reconstruction (Solidere). Beirut Gate will be developed on the Martyrs' Square axis that extends to Damascus Road, which passes through the middle of the city and to the port. The project is also close to the highway, which provides access to the airport.

So,the final renders are yet to be released?????????

^^ Thats correct... only the tower has been decided but there are several other buildings which have not been finalized.

Wrecking ball awaits Downtown Beirut landmark
Oddly shaped theater has benefited from several reprieves, but now its luck seems to be running out

http://www.dailystar.com.lb//admin/storage/articles/zoom/200610162245420.10-B.jpg

By Kaelen Wilson-Goldie
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, October 17, 2006

BEIRUT: It's an icon, it's an eyesore - whatever it is, it's doomed again. The bulbous, pock-marked structure flanking Martyrs Square in Downtown Beirut - an old movie theater known variously as the dome, the egg, the bubble, the blob, saboune (meaning soap) or by its official name, the Beirut City Center Building - is inevitably going to be demolished, according to all parties currently involved in deciding the building's fate.

Over the years, that fate has been subjected to a rather epic tug of war.

Originally designed by Leb-anese architect Joseph Philippe Karam, the dome was built in 1965 as part of a larger, three-part complex of towers and shopping arcades that was expected, in an untimely burst of inauspicious optimism, to become the most important commercial center in the Middle East.

The dome owes its peculiar shape and elevation to a zoning law in effect at the time that barred construction above a cinema. It is celebrated still as a triumph of Beirut's modernist era - a more whimsical but no less innovative variation on the brutalist designs realized elsewhere in the city.

The complex surrounding the dome was never finished and when the Civil War broke out in 1975, the building was abandoned. Martyrs Square became a wasteland of warring factions and the building was repeatedly shelled. Its lower floors were also badly damaged by neglected drainage systems, and the building was taken over for a time by militiamen.

When the war ended, the dome was pegged as a site for the new Finance Ministry headquarters. In the mid-1990s, contracts were signed, construction began and the nose of the building was knocked off. Then, with a change in government, all those contracts were torn up and the project died.

Without function or future, the dome slid into its role as an off-kilter cultural site. It hosted raves, experimental theater productions and exhibitions of contemporary art. Used as such, the building has since come into its own. Because it has never been whitewashed, it maintains its ties to the past and at the same time has a downtrodden retro glam that appeals to a younger generation. Because centrally located cultural spaces are few to non-existent in Beirut, the dome has become vital to the city's art and music scenes, which otherwise exist without any real infrastructure to speak of.

In 2003, Solidere, the land bank charged with Downtown Beirut's continuing urban renewal, announced it was going to demolish the dome. The news was met with considerable consternation from the capital's architects, artists, activists and heritage preservationists.

A year later, Solidere made a surprising about-face. Instead of tearing the building down, it commissioned Bernard Khoury, arguably the country's most daring renegade architect, to design a rehabilitation scheme that would keep the building intact and revamp it as a mixed-use cultural and commercial center.

Khoury's plans involved liberating the shell of the building from the concrete slabs around it and bracing the structure with scaffolding on all sides. The design called for an audacious red floor to be spread across the surface of the site, with a series of glass boxes looking down to the first of six underground floors.

Khoury's rehabilitation plan had always been considered a temporary gesture and required a third party to come in and manage the site. Solidere agreed to freeze any sale of the plot on which the dome stands - rumored to be worth $40 million - for a period of five years. But that agreement melted away prematurely. Two years later, Solidere sold the plot - along with seven others - to Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH).

ADIH is the force behind BEIRUT GATE, a $600-million self-proclaimed mega-project that caps the southern end of Martyrs Square and butts up against the Fouad Chehab ring road. Covering over 20,000 square kilometers and calling for nearly 180,000 square meters of built-up area, Beirut Gate is to incorporate luxury apartments, office spaces, hotels, retail outlets and so on.

Though no designs have yet been finalized, ADIH has commissioned Christian de Portzamparc (the only Frenchman ever to win the Pritzker Prize, architecture's answer to the Nobel) and the firm Aquitectonica, along with Lebanese architects Nabil Gholam and the Erga Group, to design different pieces of the puzzle.

On Friday, following a news conference to announce that the Beirut Gate deal, inked earlier this spring and before the war in Lebanon this summer, would go ahead as planned, ADIH's Ineke Zodang said the dome's demolition was imminent. That declaration may have jumped the gun, but few would argue that the dome is now anything but doomed.

Though not immediately responsible for the site on which the dome stands, Gholam says that the building's survival is unlikely.

"I have pressed for its retention, as has Christian de Port-zamparc," adds Angus Gavin, who heads up Solidere's urban planning division. "But the developer has always claimed he will have to demolish the dome because it is non-viable." To insist on its retention, Gavin adds, "is a huge constraint" for ADIH.

From a financial point of view, the dome makes no sense because it doesn't exploit the site. It doesn't come close to filling out the maximum built-up area allowed on the plot of land, which, when compared to the size of the dome itself, is huge.

So what of Bernard Khoury's phantom rehabilitation plan?

"Bernard Khoury is the world's leading architect for post-war temporary structures. He's interested in cultural entertainment. But no one stepped forward to manage [the project]," says Gavin. "Eventually, the chairman [Nasser Chamma] came to us and said: 'This project isn't really working, is it?'"

Beyond wiping yet another modernist icon off Beirut's map, the sale of the site sets a curious precedent. It is defined in Solidere's master plan for Downtown Beirut as a plot that must be developed for cultural use. Yet the design brief ADIH presented on Friday tags Plot 987, on which the dome stands, as "residential/retail/commercial."

"It is an unusual deal that the developer did," says Gavin. "It gives them lots of flexibility in terms of land use. Usually, the development brief is part of the sale. Land use is defined. We imposed a brief that requires cultural activity on that site but they've got clever lawyers." The deal allowed ADIH 10 months to define the land use for Beirut Gate and ultimately proved Solidere's own land-use designations to be legally non-binding, all of which means the dome will likely give way to a hotel and conference center complex.

"We are sill insisting on a major cultural component," says Gavin. But on Friday ADIH's Zodang said simply that the dome would come down, that something cultural would be substituted somewhere else, and that it would be underground.

The dome's likely demolition raises numerous questions, some old, some new. If Solidere's land-use designations are so easily batted away, what does the future hold for the current blankness of Martyrs Square, the Bourj, Beirut's pre-eminent public space? From an observer's point of view, it seems well within the realm of possibility that Solidere would sell the Martyrs Statue itself if the right bidder came calling. It is difficult to argue against a project like Beirut Gate because it foretells a resurgence of investor confidence so vital to an economy blindsided by war. But it is still worth considering, what kind of city will that line of thinking ultimately create, where any sale is a good sale?

When asked if he has any last words for the lost project he spent so many months working on, Bernard Khoury gives a weary laugh. "The dome?" he says. "The dome is dead."

^^ It's kinda sad in a way . . .

^^ It's kinda sad in a way . . .

Now you're saying that???? ;)

^^ lol well after reading the article and knowing that the demolition is imminent, I cant help but regret that a piece of Beirut's history - an artifact - will be gone forever. I still think its an eyesore and that any rehabilitation will be a wasteful project, and its in Beiruts best interest that it be demolished.

i always wanted this one to stay,koz i know it's part of Beirut's history.
i donnu,but i'm not so happy about it.

So,r they really demolishing it on friday?????????

Can someone be there to video tape the whole thing (demolition) or at least take some pics? It will be an exciting event I wish I was there!

It is sad that this building is going to be demolished. I was excited when I read abour Khoury's project. This building has become something that everyone knows and a building that is unique to Beirut. A lot of these new buildings that are coming up are similar to big projects held world wide. We need to keep our heritage and something unique for us. I personally really oppose demolishing it.

If you look closely at the left side of this drawing you see a tall tower right in the face of the Armenian church, totally blocking its view from the square and highway.

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/8903/beirutgate3pq4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)


I cant believe I am opposed to a highrise, but really this location is so wrong... how do you guys feel?

You're kinda right Beirut!, it will hide the Church that's one thing and it will look tooo modern imo for the part of the city.

^^ Yes, it will clash with Saifi... oh well everything in Beirut clashes anyway! Thats its style lol

^^ hehe I guess your right, other then that, im excited for the tall tower, it will be a view from there

The project will turn the martyrs' square upside down :D will change everything.

UPDATE: I saw new advertisements (about the project) in the area where Beirut Gate will rise.

Yesterday (Thursday) I walked near the "ball". I didn't realise any activity regarding demolition...

Cool,can u take pics plz for those advertisements,nareg????

It's friday and they still haven't demolished it yet (past next to it an hour ago).
I really hope they will integrate it to final project....

^^ Oh thats right Charly, you were one of the "save the bubble" advocates... Im sorry but it doesnt look good for the bubble! You have to admit it has been such an eyesore for so long it will just be refreshing to see it gone.

Funny... I've seen it many times... But i don't think i ever really wondered or asked what it was... Hmm.. Anyways, sure it may have some historical, cultural, or sentimental value, but i think its ultimately better off being demolished...

As Leb-iT said soo eloquently, "blow its ass up" !!

LoL.. :)

Beirut Gate rebuilds belief
by Sean Cronin
Advanced Tools

Fraser says that there is a feeling of stability in the Lebanese real estate market as things return to normality after the month-long bombing campaign.
You were caught in Beirut on the day the bombing campaign was launched, how long were you there?

I was only there for three days. We were actually there for a company seminar, believe it or not. The week after that seminar was when we were supposed to have the launch event for Beirut Gate. So we lost about two months, in terms of time.

Has there been significant fallout from the conflict on the real estate sector?

People have been asking me if prices have gone up or down. But it’s neither, because there haven’t been any sales or transactions. So there has not been any evidence to say prices have gone down.

The feeling is that stability has returned, I was there the other day. I went out at night, the streets are packed and there were people in cafés. You’d be hard pressed to think that six weeks ago there were F16s flying around the place. It really is incredible.

Have there been any significant distress sales of development land in the market?

I’m not saying this for the sake of it, but there hasn’t been any distress sales of property in Lebanon. We have had people ringing us up asking: ‘Do you want to sell?’ Well, no we don’t want to sell. Of course they are looking for distress sales, but I am not aware of any distress sales. I think people realised this wasn’t going to be drawn out over a long period of time

What about the physical impact?

In terms of what you see when you are there on business, it looks like the country is back to normal. That said, I didn’t visit those areas that were really affected. If I had, perhaps I would have a different perspective. Clearly there is a lot of infrastructure damage, but that hasn’t hindered our decision to carry on with the progress of the project.

Has your projected return on investment for this project been adversely affected by the bombing campaign?

Our business plan is not to build out – it is to get building permits and sell the plots with the benefit of consents. So our ROI [return on investment] target is not affected. We have
lost six weeks, but we had an overall 18-month investment target and we are still on target for that.

When do you think we will see a noticeable upturn in Beirut’s real estate and construction sector?

My gut feeling is that when Eid, Christmas and New Year are out of the way and we get to the spring – assuming nothing untoward happens between now and then – we’ll start to see the momentum gathering again, because there will be enough breathing space between what has happened this year, and that is when things will start moving.

One of the sites is close to being sold anyway, and in the next six to eight weeks we’ll announce sale of at least one of our plots, which will give a confidence boost not only for our project, but for the whole city and country as a whole.

Has investor attitude changed as a result of the conflict?

If you are talking about downtown Beirut, the market for those apartments is, generally speaking, the Gulf. I don’t think the Gulf people are going to be put off by going back to Beirut. They like Lebanon, they like Beirut, and there is a comfort factor being halfway between Europe and the Middle East. They are not buying for their first home, they probably have two or three anyway, and this will just be another one.

When are we likely to see construction start on Beirut Gate?

The final plans are being submitted to Solidere by the end of the month and thereafter the [Beirut] Municipality. It is even more important now to give a sign that Lebanon is open for business; therefore we are hopeful that the approval process will be swift and not a long drawn out bureaucratic nightmare.

They [Solidere] will probably do everything they can to get this moving. They have said they will, and I think they mean it, because they know they need to give a vote of confidence for the country.

GOOD NEWS :)


Beirut Gate first plot sold within two weeks of launch


Posted: 29-10-2006 , 11:26 GMT
Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) announced that it has a buyer for the first of eight plots in its US$600 million mega-project in the centre of Beirut.



Rashad Janahi, CEO of ADIH signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) (yesterday, Saturday October 28 2006), just two weeks after the official launch of the landmark project. Janahi is also chairman of the recently-formed holding company for Beirut Gate.



He confirmed that the flagship deal is valued at some $30million and indicated that interest has been rife since the mid October inaugural event, with the strong possibility of two more plots being sold before the end of the year.



“We have another great project in Beirut Gate, one that has fast attracted mature investor interest,” he said, referring to the earlier success this year with the Lagoon Bahrain project which was 60 per cent contracted within four weeks of launch.



The first plot MoU at Beirut Gate has been snapped up by STAR Property & Tourist Development S.A.L. The managing partner of the Lebanon-based company, Imad Nesnas, said that his team is thrilled to be at the forefront of one of the first new era developments in the Lebanese capital.



“We have every confidence that this development will provide a major boost for the people of Beirut and the economy of Lebanon, and we want to be part of this,” he said.



“Beirut Gate will be an exceptional project and we are confident that it has long-term value, which will deliver healthy and sustainable returns to our investors, as well as building a legacy in commercial and residential activity for Beirut.”



When complete, Beirut Gate will be an integrated commercial and residential seaview project in the Beirut Central District, commonly known as Solidere - a renovated historic area developed by Societe Libanaise Pour Le Development et La Reconstruction (Solidere).



Nesnas also shared that this is his company’s second foray into real estate development in the Lebanese capital, within Solideire. STAR is also an investor in Solideire’s Beirut Garden project, where demand has been high.



The deal between ADIH and STAR was brokered by Bahrain-based, real estate developers and contractors, Bonyan International.



According to Bonyan’s business development manager, Abdulwahid Al Ahmed, Beirut Gate provides an excellent investment in a forward-thinking project.



“At Bonyan, we have worked on numerous new era projects across the region, and I can state with authourity that the vision for Beirut Gate is completely in keeping with the demands of a forward-thinking capital city in the Middle East,” he said.



This is Bonyan’s second activity with ADIH. They were recently appointed as the project management company for ADIH’s Lagoon Bahrain, the region’s first commercial freehold project on the Kingdom’s Amwaj Island development.



Al Ahmed cited the architectural excellence of the Beirut Gate master plan as one of the project’s outstanding key success factors.



According to ADIH’s Janahi, a team of four world-class architects have been commissioned to work in tandem on the vast, master-planed project. These include French architect Christian de Potzempark, of New York’s legendary LVMH towers fame; Arquitectonica, a highly-applauded US based architectural firm; Nabil Gholam, a popular Lebanese architect; and Erga Group, another sought-after Lebanese firm.



Nesnas confirmed that it was such attention-to-excellence by ADIH that further cemented his firm’s decision to be first in on committing to the project : “We are convinced that ADIH with the Beirut Gate project are set to bring a new meaning and definition of inner city, urban development.



“The four design houses – all best-of-breed - are a sure sign that the tangible proof will be revealed by new levels of architecture and design. This is truly a landmark project.”



He also revealed that STAR had acquired the centre plot of the eight (Plot 1525), and that the mixed-use residential/retail tower has been designed by Arquitectonica : “We have a footprint of 1,350 square metres, equating to a finished, built-up area of 13,608 square metres over 13 floors,” concluded Nesnas.



The Beirut Gate development comprises eight plots spread over 21,448 square metres and a built-up area of 178,500 square metres overlooking the famous Martyrs’ Square of Lebanon, downtown Beirut and the Mediterranean.



The project is also close to the highway, which provides access to the airport. This area, located near Foch-Allenby, is famed for its historic and diversified architecture, blending Ottoman, Italian and French styles, Place de L’Etoile, and the main shopping district.



© 2006 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)

Where's the "Bubble" ?

http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/2466/beirutgatebd4.jpg

As I promised last time, here are the advertisements placed all over the area which will comprise Beirut Gate.

http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/6781/dscn1068fn2.jpg

As you notice, they have placed advertisements near the infamous "Bubble".

http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/8258/dscn1064vm2.jpg

http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/8714/dscn1067av0.jpg


In the middle of this land, they have set-up this "monument".

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/5577/dscn1070mv5.jpg

^^ Wow just amazing! Interesting structure...

one thing that worries me though is that it appears the tower will no longer have a spire.

I also appreciate the classy way in which they put up the signs (they didnt board-up the whole area yet) and the use of flags is really nice.

yes,me too,i love this way of advertising.
Well,i guess that structure is not complete yet :)

Beirut Gate's final design plans submitted to Solidere
Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) today announced that the final design plans for its US$600 million project in the centre of Beirut were submitted to Solidere, the company responsible for developing Beirut city centre.
United Arab Emirates: 1 hour, 40 minutes ago PRESS RELEASE



Michael Lawrence, Abu Dhabi Investment House's director of real estate.


Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) RSS feed
Lagoon construction is well on track
Beirut Gate first plot sold within two weeks of launch
Abu Dhabi Investment House announces European Subsidiary in Geneva
The Lagoon Bahrain signs project management team
Construction to begin on Beirut Gate
» more Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) news
New renderings of the project have now been released, for members of the public to get a first glance of how the project will look when finalized, and they show a modern transformation of Beirut's most historical areas, Martyrs Square.

Four world-renowned architects were in the city last month to finalise the design master plan, where they took part in the final (of four) design workshops for Beirut Gate, which will be an integrated commercial and residential sea view project in the Beirut Central District, commonly known as Solidere.

Submitting the final designs to Solidere will set the project on the right track towards completion, as now all the final approvals from Solidere, municipality and all parties involved will be received on time and according to plans.

Michael Lawrence, Abu Dhabi Investment House's director of real estate, praised the move: 'Creative minds from France, New York and the Middle East have deliberated and debated over these designs for several months now. By submitting the final designs to Solidere, we can say that we are on the right track towards completion of the Beirut Gate.'

French architect Christian de Potzempark, of New York's legendary LVMH towers fame; Arquitectonica, a highly regarded US based architectural firm; Nabil Gholam, a popular Lebanese architect; and Erga Group, another sought-after Lebanese firm, have finalised the design plans earlier this month and submitted them to ADIH, the company responsible for the development of Beirut Gate.

'Thankfully, all parties are now more than happy, and we are all unanimously excited about the new renderings and being on the right track towards obtaining the final approvals,' he added.

The Beirut Gate development will comprise eight plots spread over 21,448 square metres and a built-up area of 178,500 square metres overlooking the famous Martyrs' Square of Lebanon, downtown Beirut and the Mediterranean.

'Beirut Gate will be an exceptional project and we are confident that it has long-term value, which will deliver healthy and sustained returns to investors,' concluded Lawrence.

Beirut Gate is located near Foch-Allenby, an area famed for its historic and diversified architecture, blending Ottoman, Italian and French styles, Place de L'Etoile, and the main shopping district. The Beirut Central District, where the project is located, is a renovated historic area developed by Societe Libanaise Pour Le Development et La Reconstruction (Solidere). Beirut Gate will be developed on the Martyrs' Square axis that extends to Damascus Road, which passes through the middle of the city and to the port. The project is also close to the highway, which provides access to the airport.



source: http://www.ameinfo.com/102268.html

is this render old or new?
http://www.daralhayat.com/business/11-2006/Item-20061118-fc6a30d7-c0a8-10ed-01a4-77df3e04ffd3/story.html

1st time i see this.it maybe the new one.it looks like a lowrise version of the phoenician village.
but i don't think it's the new one.

is this render old or new?
http://www.daralhayat.com/business/11-2006/Item-20061118-fc6a30d7-c0a8-10ed-01a4-77df3e04ffd3/story.html

Oh I hope it's not new... just hideous, but it will go well with the Beirut Gardens and the PV.

thanks to khayam

http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/8215/article1705es7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

What happend to this project. This desgin is looking bad.

We doubt this is the new design,libano.

http://www.propertyworldme.com/content/html/1705.asp

I hope so, but the reder is also on this site.

mmmmmm,i say it's too early to say this,could be right though.

...."French architect Christian de Potzempark, of New York’s legendary LVMH towers fame; Arquitectonica, a highly regarded US based architectural firm; Nabil Gholam, a popular Lebanese architect; and Erga Group, another sought-after Lebanese firm, have finalised the design plans earlier this month and submitted them to ADIH, the company responsible for the development of Beirut Gate."....

from http://www.propertyworldme.com/content/html/1705.asp


In this articel they mention those firms. They don't mention the project yet.

http://www.erga.com/
http://www.chdeportzamparc.com/
http://www.ngarchitecture.com/

the 'new' render is showing a limited angle, so it is hard to make a final judgment. But I also don't feel good about it, from a glance it looks like a postmodern interpretation of 1960s Eastern European housing blocs.

^^oh wow i think it's the final design, i love it

well,so i assume the main tower will look just like those but taller.

^^oh wow i think it's the final design, i love it

Are you serious??? Its just awful... especially when compared to the "original" renderings. This is a huge disappointment if true... I dont care how world-renowned the architects are.

BEFORE:

http://mea707.lrehosting.com/BeirutGate/1.jpg


NOW:

http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/8215/article1705es7.jpg

disappointing!! c moche !!!

Pretty ugly, but it was well known that the original renderings were just to give an idea of what it could possibly look like. They weren't actual professional architectural designs.

I am beginning to see a new trend of ugliness in buildings in Beirut, it's a shame...

thats gone from nasty to nastier, but then again we can't judge until it is built, i've never seen any building that has that kind of a facade so it is difficult to judge and + we're not 100% sure if this is it, hopefully not!

http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/8215/article1705es7.jpg

Throwing some steel & glass on it might make it look nicer.

I wouldn't mind one if only one of the buildings went ahead... But all three is a little too much.

Maybe we should wait and see renderings from all angles and the type of materials used... but as it stands, I'm a little disappointed as well.

http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/6301/p1114fx9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/8668/p2114py2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/1800/p3114ay3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/4668/p4114ys3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/750/p5114nl7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/3877/p6114vk2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

mmmmmm,those are old,right???not the new design,right?

where did u find these models ?

Another variation...................

http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/3174/14102006etp14qt4.jpg

http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/3074/bgthedailystarpage1pc6.jpg

woooooooooooow awesome pics. How old is this article?

Mmmmmmmmmmm,the 2nd article contains the old renders,,maybe the 1st one is the new one.i like it.

OH I hope the first render is how it will look like, the second one as well!

Is it only me who has the feeling that the first render cannot fit into the area?

^^ No, I feel the same way, that is why I am not so excited... It seems like this render isnt even for Beirut.

Yes, exactly. That render is not for Beirut Gate.

it looks to gulf style buildings

Where r the new renders,,,,,not been published yet????????

Also the "Beirut Gates" Facing some problems regarding its 'Shares' or something,

The shareholders are selling their shares and pulling out of the project. Expected...

You don't have shareholders, you don't have money. Without money, you cannot build.

^^ Well we all know the reason for this unnecessary mess. I find it ridiculous that no legal action is being taken against trespassers.

Trespassers or no trespassers, as long as there is a serious political crisis in the country, investors are going to be very skeptical about investing in Lebanon.

Seeing that this crisis started before they even planned to start construction, investors can very easily pull out of the project and it looks like that's whats happened...

I have oem final renderings for this project..does anyone know how to save from a webpage that is a flash site? And guess what!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The "bubble" is preserved under one building!!!!

^^ I PMed you how to do it... new renders would be nice, cant wait!

OK I think i finally got it...Thank you Beirut! Notice the "Bubble" !!!! :banana:

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb2/Htlebmn/BeirutGateInfo.jpg

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb2/Htlebmn/BeirutGate1.jpg
http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb2/Htlebmn/BeirutGate2.jpg
http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb2/Htlebmn/BeirutGateBubbleUnder.jpg
http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb2/Htlebmn/BeirutGate3.jpg

impressive, they fit the surrounding very well, are these the final designs for sure??? what happened with the tall tower with the spire???And I love how they solved the bubble problem, that's sooooo smart lol

Nice work AmeriLEB!

Can we be certain that these are the latest and final renderings?

I am liking these buildings much better, but I do prefer the original tower.

These are the designs for 3 or 4 of the buildings. I think the project is 8..(these look like the southside)...these are the buildings that French architect Christian de Potzempark, of New York's legendary LVMH towers fame..designed

Here are the renderings by Nabil Gholam for the building he has designed for the project,

(loction: parking lot in-between the "bubble" and the Al Amin Moque):


http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/3d3.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/3d2.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/3d1.jpg

Plans:

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/p2.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/p1.jpg


The building is designed to allow maximum flexibility and multiple residential layouts. The mass of the building is sculpted allowing for terraces, urban gardens and views. The whole is enveloped with an aerated skin creating screens for privacy and for shading control.
37 000 m² residential /retail + 5 basements floors.



(Thanks to ainmreisiot for finding these images)

^^i like it,and u all know why :D koz of the trees :D but it's so different than the ones posted by AmeriLeB,it looks like it's another project :S

^^ Well that's what happens when you have 4 different international architects working on the same project.

Actually, this building fits its surroundings since its facade is the same color as the mosque (and other buildings in the area) and by also incorporating glass it fits well with the other BG buildings.

what is the Building structure !!

I agree with Beirut the buildings in my post, Nabil Gholam's building, and the mosque all are the same colors and materials..they all match!..Is this 14 tories? It also takes away from the massivness of the mosque...I cannot wait!!!!!

^^ Yes, I counted about 14F as well.

As for the mosque, it will be sandwiched in-between this building and the Beirut Gardens building (which is similar height).

The latest from the 2006 Solidere Annual Report:


http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/bg.jpg

Theres 8 plots and 4 designers. I think they all are a part....In the new Solidere Annual it describes "flying carpet" walkways...that was in the desgn I posted earlier..

Is this the one on the block facing the highway? Looks like its angled to appear that way

^^ These are the buildings that will make up most of the 8 plots. Together they all make up Beirut Gate.


http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/bg.jpg

+

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/3d3.jpg

+

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb2/Htlebmn/BeirutGate2.jpg

+

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb2/Htlebmn/BeirutGateBubbleUnder.jpg

So if the tower no longer looks like this why did they go as far as to make posters for it?

http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/8714/dscn1067av0.jpg

^^ just as an introduction to the project, I doubt it but I think that would be the facade from the back, we never know

Erga is one of the companies participated in Finalizing the renderings.

mmmmmmmmmm,those renders from their website


http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/7032/bgate1pl4.jpg

http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/9785/bgate2yw7.jpg

Bad news guys..accpording to an article published today on nowlebanon.com

"Beirut Gate, the largest real estate investment project in Lebanese history, was called off just this past week"

Solidere is saying the municipality is in the permiting phase..lets hope this is temp..and will be back..(i mean they did all the work)..but as of now looks like it is cancelled

^^ Well we cant blame them for calling it off....THERE IS NO PLOT! It is under occupation!

Ameri, can you please post the article?

Ill post it in the investment thread since its on the economy in general and only mentioned that much of it..

Here is a newer logo and some sort of glimpse of yet another rendering for this project by ADIH:

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/00000641_BeirutGate.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/beirut-gate-1.jpg

^^ Here is a larger rendering + additional ones from ERGA:


http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/2-5.jpg


http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/5-3.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/4-1.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/3-3.jpg

^^ Also known as "Plot 901 Saifi" (ERGA)

So which one will be contructed?

I saw someone post that 3 projects will soon start construction: landmark, phoencian v, beirut gate...
We should have by now the final renders!

http://www.baidas.net/public/images/bgate.gif

^^oh,So there are two towers 35 floors and one tower 26 floors?that's cool :)

Can someone copy and paste the article? i can't highlight to run thru translator. Or can someone translate ?

^^ That's Because it's an image..
it talks about the relaunching of the project and start of construction soon .. some crap .. and then some details on it (two towers 35 floors res. and one tower 26 floors and a couple 12s buisness and a leisure center with a hotel )

The hotel is going to be only 4 stars. There will also be cinemas...

^^ Do we need a cinema so close to the Landmark (which will also have a cinema)?

from Shark AlAwsat

http://asharqalawsat.com/2008/06/06/images/economy1.473763.jpg

Nice no more place for potential protests...Altho it was a great public place for concerts etc...Thats an aswesome fill for that area..and the one in front will be the Canadian Bank....Martyrs square will be a square again

I heard from a friend they will start the Martyrs square Hardscape project...Apparantly they promised Beirut Gate and Phonecia village they will be completed so the whole area is nice when they are done...Martyrs square will be insane in 2-3 years!!!

Did it say when it will start or just talking in generalities?

^^ Well if you recall, they were very close to starting right before the sit-in started...so it could be very soon.

Major update: Really nice white flags promoting this project have been erected all throughout the perimeter of the plots. These are much nicer than the original ones that were put up before the sit-in.

I was in Centre-Ville yesterday and I have some good news : the plots of this project have been surrounded by flags on wich it's written "Beirut Gate" .

(Photos coming soon)

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k273/dp_Mitzidupree/Image462.jpg

Flags look good..i hated that box stck thing lol

^^ Do you mean the temporary monument? There is now scaffolding around it so I guess they will keep it for now but maybe paint it or something.

plus properties announced today in newspapers under the title of "faith in lebanon" that 2 plots which are part of the beirut gate project (called plus towers 1&2) which will be on the plots along martyrs square behind the U/C Lebanese Canadian bank will start construction begining of 2009 and a pre-sales launch for properties in the two towers (commercial and residential) will be held on august 28 & 29 at the Haptoor Grand Hotel Beirut from 10AM till 8 PM

plus towers 1& 2 will resemble the renders of post 143 on page 8

THANK YOU! I was trying to get the info...All i could get was the news line. I hope those side towers look better than the render..kinda bulky and boxy

Just to clarify- The center tower plot to the right of post 143 is owned by STAR Property & Tourist Development S.A.L. It is not part of Dubai Plus Properties plans just mentioned.

^^ Plus Properties have launched a major promotional campaign today...many billboards and advertising spaces along the main coastal highway are filled with their ad (which shows the exact same renderings with the Martyrs' Square statue in the foreground).

^^ Here is the image I was referring to...it's now posted on the Plus Properties websitde.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d184/rhmud/plus.jpg

Plus properties makes impressive lebanon entry with usd 200 million residential twin-tower in downtown beirut

Plus Tower 1 and 2 will comprise luxury apartments, duplexes and penthouses

Beirut - August 26, 2008: On the heels of its resounding success in the UAE, Plus Properties, an upcoming real estate developer in the Middle East, has announced its foray into the Lebanon property market with the launch of two luxury residential properties in Downtown Beirut – Plus Tower 1 and Plus Tower 2. The announcement was made at a press conference held at Al Habtoor Grand Hotel in Beirut.

“The launch of Plus Towers marks yet another milestone for Plus Properties, and provides a significant fillip to our strategic expansion program,” Georges Chehwane, CEO of Plus Properties, said, speaking at the press conference. “The Plus Towers are designed to offer the ultimate in luxury and comfort, making available to residents a whole host of modern amenities and smart home features. A key highlight of the project will be its unique and picturesque setting, which captures the breathtaking landscape of Beirut in all its natural glory.”

The USD 200 million towers, located only steps away from Beirut’s shopping and entertainment district, will consist of premium 2, 3 and 4 bedroom apartments, duplexes and penthouses, with spaces ranging from 240 square meters to 585 square meters. In addition to the residential units, the 14-floor towers will each comprise premium retail spaces on the ground & first levels.

Plus Properties’ entry into Lebanon comes in the wake of its tremendous success in the UAE market, and furthers the company’s expansion in the Middle East region.

“Lebanon is quickly reestablishing its reputation as an investment hotspot, and the Government of Lebanon has done a remarkable job in dramatically improving the country’s investment climate and business viability. We look forward to stepping up our investment in Lebanon, while simultaneously focusing on expanding our regional reach,” Chehwane added.

Designed by US-based Arquitectonica, Plus Tower 1 and 2 will feature a range of world-class amenities and leisure facilities. The penthouses each come with private terraces and offer panoramic views of the city. The project will be developed according to the international standards stipulated by Solidere, the master developers of Downtown Beirut.

“We are grateful to Solidere for their constant support, and we look forward to working closely with them through to the completion of the project,” Chehwane concluded.

Awesome thanks Beiruti. I wonder if they sold the other plots. I know of just Plus Properties and Star property. Wonder when Star will start. Also there is a 3rd tower they are to build...I guess there just doing 1 and 2 now.

Arquitectonica (the architect) describes the 3 towers as a "fusion of traditional wooden screens with contemporary glass and metal penetrations". The reality will probably look better than the renders. Its hard to see that kind of design (texture ,light refraction etc). The towers will be about 540k sqr feet of retail and residential space. It is desgned to activate a pedestrian enviroment between rue bechara Khoury and Rue De Damas.

would be a good idea if someone created a thread on this new project in dt, plus towers by plus prop.

Tower 1 and 2 will be the most western plots (closest to martyrs square) the 3rd is behind them. The anticipated completion for both towers is December 2011.

I think you should keep the thread togeather as its all Beirut Gate. ADIH developed the project as a turnkey project. Individual developers bought the land and plans from them. The parcels are a set.

would be a good idea if someone created a thread on this new project in dt, plus towers by plus prop.

I am planning on making a separate thread for each individual project that will make up Beirut Gate. We will keep this thread for general overall information.

Although they are all called "Beirut Gate", there will be several buildings and it will be hard to document them all here in one thread. Besides, this thread is already way too long as it is and construction hasnt even begun yet!

im not sure if they're tearing it down or changing it:
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/3847/p1050992ul5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Probably fixing it...If they were tearing it dwn thede just buldoze it and not put up scaffolding

http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/kk7/mohamadm/beirut_gate1.jpg

http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/kk7/mohamadm/beirut_gate2.jpg

the new flags look nice.

i think its time someone changes the title from project to under construction

^^ There is no construction going on yet.

وقع بيت ابو ظبي للاستثمار شراكة استراتيجية مع كل من شركة رود القابضة ومقرها دولة قطر وشركة سيفكو القابضة ومقرها لبنان لتطوير مشروع "بوابة بيروت" بقيمة اجمالية تصل الى 1.2مليار دولار اميركي.

ووقعت الاتفاقية اثناء افتتاح خدمة الزبائن لمشروع بوابة بيروت كل من العضو المنتدب لبيت ابو ظبي للاستثمار رشاج جناحي وعضو مجلس الادارة في شركة رود القابضة ناصر بيضون ورئيس مجلس ادارة شركة سيفكو شاهي براونيان.

وقال الجناحي "لموقع المستقبل" ان توقيع الإتفاقية مع الشركتين القطرية واللبنانية يعد خطوة مهمة في مسيرة الاعمال والمشروعات الكبيرة لبيت ابوظبي للاستثمار حيث سيقوم مع الشركة القطرية بتطوير مساحة 76الف متر مربع لبناء تجمع سكن وتجاري وسياحي كبير يضم شققا فاخرة واسواق ومجمعات تجارية عالمية وفندق بلغاري الشهير.

كذلك سيقوم مع الشركة اللبنانية بتطوير مساحة 26 الف متر مربع من المشروع العملاق بوابة بيروت لبناء شقق ووحدات تجارية مميزة.

اضاف: ان الظروف الآن مناسبة جدا لانطلاق مسيرة الاستثمار في لبنن بعد تحسن الاوضاع السياسية بعد اتفاق الدوحة وخصوصا ان الاستقرار سيعمل على تنشيط الاستثمارات واعادتها الى لبنان حيث تتوفر كل مقومات النجاح للاستثمارات الداخلية والوافدة.

وقال: ان هناك عدد من الدراسات لمشروعات مبتكرة ستمتد في الجمهورية اللبنانية التي تحتاج الى عدد من المشاريع التنموية ومشاريع البنى التحتية، ومن المقرر ان تصل الاستثمارات في المشروع 1.2 مليار دولار ومن المفترض انجازه في 2014 على ان تنجز المرحلة الاولى اواخر 2009.

^^2014?!?!?! Why so long?!?!?!

Bvulgari Hotel?????

^^2014?!?!?! Why so long?!?!?!

First phase will be finished in 2009.

WOw ... 1.2 Billions!!!?? wasnt it 600 millions or im just not up to date?

Hassoun where did u read about a hotel? i didnt see it

^^Here's an article in English:
http://www.gulfnews.com/business/Real_Estate_Property/10252325.html

(MENAFN - Khaleej Times) Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) has signed strategic partnership deals with Lebanese and Qatari developers to build a $1.2 billion worth mixed use up-scale real estate project in the downtown Beirut.

The Beirut Gate project will comprise of up-scale residential, commercial and tourist components. The whole project will completed in 2014, while first phase will be ready by end of 2009.

In this regard, strategic partnership deals were signed yesterday between Abu Dhabi Investment House, Sayfco Holdings, a Lebanese real estate developer and Roads Holdings , a Qatari property development firm, to build the mega project.

The project will be developed on eight plots of land strategically located in downtown Beirut. It will develop an up-market new style district within Beirut.

The design of the project as a whole was conducted by 'Erga', the renowned Lebanese architectural firm.

At a ceremony held in Beirut, yesterday Rashad Y. Janahi, managing director ADIH and his top team comprising Fawaz Ali Al Jowder, deputy CEO ADIH signed MOUs with two other partners. They were represented by Nasser Baidoun, CEO, Roads Holdings and Chahe A. Yervanian, chairman Sayfco Holdings.

ADIH and Sayfco Holdings will be developing a total area of over 26,000 square metres of the project, which will include luxury living and shopping.

A total of 76,000 sqm of the project will also be co-developed by ADIH and Roads Holdings. The components of this particular area will include up-scale residential and commercial units, in addition to developing the 'Bulgari Hotel'.

Rashad Y. Janahi speaking on the occasion said that ADIH aims to establish strategic partnerships with renowned and reputable developers in the region.

He said that the two firms with which MoUs have been signed are reputable and led by top industry professionals, who have the capabilities to execute and develop mega projects. On the prospects of Lebanon, Janahi said that it is a very unique and attractive market for investments.

Courtesy of James
September 5th 2008
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3230/2955801866_fe984f013a_o.jpg

They still havent got rid of that bubble buidling!?

http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/pp145/DualEngine/BG1.jpg

^^ Is this a part of B-Gate?

Yes, it is part of the B-Gate. I think that they changed the design of the Plus Towers. I took that picture last week on Friday.

^^ Do u mean they changed them to this??
cause i definitely dont think so

If its on display, I guess it is then.

Yes, it is part of the B-Gate. I think that they changed the design of the Plus Towers. I took that picture last week on Friday.


I doubt they would have changed the design so soon after they almost sold it out and following their huge promotional campaign. Also, the logo on the poster is just ADIH and doesn't include the Plus Towers logo. I think this is a different plot for Beirut Gate.

Plots 1542 & 1525 will be built by plus properties while the banner is on plot 1544 which is 1610 m2

The front kinda resembles the plus properties design..maybe it was refined to not look so square and boxy...hmm maybe its a corner or a different angle..

Plus propertie bought 3 plots originally....this may be the other one

I dont think it has anything to do with Plus Towers .. ther's no reference in the rendering to "Plus" and a completely different design ..

From the latest quarterly,

Beirut Gate
The project, along the Martyrs’
Square axis, consists of eight
plots ranging from 1,126 sq m
to 4,681 sq m and totaling
174,800 sq m of floor area.
Component projects designed
by world class architects are
undertaken by a group of
developers led by Abu Dhabi
Investment House. Residential
use represents 78% of total
floor area, offices 6%, retail
and cultural activities 16%.
Plus Tower One and Plus
Tower Two, on lots 1542 and
1525 Bachoura, are being
developed by Property Plus to
offer 27,800 sq m of floor area.
Their design by Arquitectonica
(US) having obtained Solidere
approval, is to be submitted to
Beirut Municipality.

In the Plus Towers advertisement video, we can see the final renderings (the latest of renderings we have) of this projects.
http://www.plusproperties.ae/node/2/13/61?submenu=subprojects&section=availability

Wow now i am totally in love:)

Thank you for the video! I really love the final plan. It said the hotel tower would be 35 floors, so is it gunna be taller than Platinum Tower?

^^ With the spire,it's going to be taller.

So we're still having the first tall glass tower with the spire?

http://img460.imageshack.us/img460/2396/33ke.jpg

^^ I dont think what is shown in the video is that the exact way the towers will look, they are just a space-holder rendering to show the height and overall look of the development. Only the designs of Plus Towers have been finalized and approved.

i am totally falling for this project, i just hope there will be a lot of green spaces around the martyrs statue.. and i hope to live until 2012 to see this project complete :D

^^ El 3omor kello, walaw!

(you seem new here, introduce urself here http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=382029&page=17 and welcome)

I didnt see this until now..that is star properties parcel

Renders from the video:


http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/1236/plus3.jpg
http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/5884/plus1.jpg
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/5830/plsu5.jpg
http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/412/plus5.jpg
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/4389/plus2.jpg

A very nice Video about the project.

LgW66uxDhM8

Thank you Hassoun for posting the video i uploaded it on youtube. That's how i find the foum here i saw its link on my channel

regards

^^ You welcome , and thanx for uploading it on youtube :)

construction of both towers has officially started :)

^^ Do you mean Plus Towers?

yeah i was going to ask the same question !!!

yes the plus towers ..advertisements are going up all over the city with signs saying "construction has started"

^^ Interesting promotional slogan...

Maybe they chose that due to the fact it took so long to get started ?

From there website:

Plus Towers work starts next month

Plus Properties, the developer that has set the grounds to make a difference, commences construction of the Plus Towers in down town Beirut as per schedule, the license to start excavation will be issued within the month, while construction works are set to start in February 2009 - soil investigation is currently under process.

Moreover, Plus Properties has executed few modifications to the original floor plans allowing for few smaller apartments on the lower floors, ranging from 167sqm to 299sqm to become available to our investors.

ADIH Signs Deals to Develop $1.2b Mixed use Beirut Gate Project
Staff Report

17 October 2008 Print E-mail
ABU DHABI — Abu Dhabi Investment House (ADIH) has signed strategic partnership deals with Lebanese and Qatari developers to build a $1.2 billion worth mixed use up-scale real estate project in the downtown Beirut.

The Beirut Gate project will comprise of up-scale residential, commercial and tourist components. The whole project will completed in 2014, while first phase will be ready by end of 2009.

In this regard, strategic partnership deals were signed yesterday between Abu Dhabi Investment House, Sayfco Holdings, a Lebanese real estate developer and Roads Holdings , a Qatari property development firm, to build the mega project.

The project will be developed on eight plots of land strategically located in downtown Beirut. It will develop an up-market new style district within Beirut.

The design of the project as a whole was conducted by ‘Erga’, the renowned Lebanese architectural firm.

At a ceremony held in Beirut, yesterday Rashad Y. Janahi, managing director ADIH and his top team comprising Fawaz Ali Al Jowder, deputy CEO ADIH signed MOUs with two other partners. They were represented by Nasser Baidoun, CEO, Roads Holdings and Chahe A. Yervanian, chairman Sayfco Holdings.

ADIH and Sayfco Holdings will be developing a total area of over 26,000 square metres of the project, which will include luxury living and shopping.

A total of 76,000 sqm of the project will also be co-developed by ADIH and Roads Holdings. The components of this particular area will include up-scale residential and commercial units, in addition to developing the ‘Bulgari Hotel’.

Rashad Y. Janahi speaking on the occasion said that ADIH aims to establish strategic partnerships with renowned and reputable developers in the region.

He said that the two firms with which MoUs have been signed are reputable and led by top industry professionals, who have the capabilities to execute and develop mega projects. On the prospects of Lebanon, Janahi said that it is a very unique and attractive market for investments.


-first phase is a little off...altho im not sure which compnet this is...it is the bulgari hotel part

Melvin Denny
http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/Nadini234/bg.jpg

http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/Nadini234/bg1.jpg

http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/Nadini234/bg13.jpg

http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/Nadini234/bg133.jpg

http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/Nadini234/bg54.jpg

http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/Nadini234/bgdf.jpg

http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu287/Nadini234/bgdf3.jpg

AWESOME update...Love the night view! you will have a limited view from martyrs square tho..the candian bank building will block is and this also doesnt show Saifi III(?)

I love that model! How tall is that tower?
I hope it is bigger than PT.

^^well if u consider that plus towers are 14 floors each and the tower looks as if its a bit taller than twice the height of plus towers in the model, so i would say its somewhere between 28-32 floors .

any updates on this?

Im not sure if this was posted before

LgW66uxDhM8

how does it look by now?any floor finished ?

^^ they're not even done with the digging :S

Abu Dhabi Investment House announces Exit of Beirut Gate Fund
28 December 2009

(ADIH) announced today the exit of its Beirut Gate Fund, which funded the purchase, master-planning and full entitlements of 8 plots of land as a mixed-use development within the Solidere area in downtown Beirut.

Fawaz Ali Al Jowder, CEO of ADIH commented, 'this exit reiterates ADIH's ability to deliver as it promised especially during a time of tough global economic climate and after long political unrest in the country. Although this inherently caused a drastic price reduction in the real estate market, economic indicators are now showing signs of recovery over the second part of this year due to the stabilization of the political scene, increase in tourism and the formation of the new government, all of which contributed to the resurgence of confidence among the business sector. On this occasion, I would like to thank our investors for their trust and patience, as well as the ADIH team for this great achievement.'

The Beirut Gate Fund, incepted early 2006, received significant demand from local and regional investors given Lebanon's economic boom specifically in the real estate and tourism sectors at that time. The project comprised eight plots of land with a total foot-print area of 21,448 sqm and a built-up area of 178,500 sqm offering residential, commercial and retail opportunities. Beirut Gate is located in the heart of Beirut within the Solidere area. The unexpected war mid that year was destructive to Lebanon's infrastructure, economy and political environment. Sale of the plots was affected as political Opposition groups staged the infamous demonstration camps lasting for almost two-years on the project lands, followed by the unforeseen global economic crisis. The election of the new Parliament and appointment of the new government this year, political and economic stability resurfaced sparking renewed interest in the real estate sector from local and international developers.

ADIH has previously exited its investors from the Lagoon fund with an ROI of 30% and a 2-year early exit from Al Arabi Private Equity Fund at a 20.2% IRR, above the projected figure. For its 2008 fiscal year, ADIH distributed 40% cash dividends to its shareholders.

-Ends-

For More Information Please call
Suad AlBadri
PR-Manager
Tel: +397336999305 / +971506123563
Email: salbadri@adih.ae


© Press Release 2009

Stupid question.. But what does this mean.. The 'exiting' of the fund!?

That it finished raising funds, and now its poised for construction!?

I think it was a big miss that they didn't start building at 2006, as i experienced the cost of construction is at leat 50% up now comparing to what
it was at that time. labour cost and finishing materials are much more expensive maybe the cement and the iron are cheaper. in general the cost are much higher now, or what do you think?

yes... but if we start playing that game of if they started in 2006.... we will never end.. so much has happened since 2006 that it was really a landmark year, We've only just emerged from the political effects of that year.

Yea im not sure i think it means it paid back the investors plus there interest...ready post 2 ..

علمت «الأخبار» أن الحفريات في مشروع بوابة بيروت ستبدأ خلال شهرين
apparently the foundation work will start in 2 months.. :)

^^ whats the source?

Courtesy of roryjamesmaxwell
Sept. 13

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4088/5016670529_905bf3e9e0_b.jpg

I dont think thats Beirut Gate..plus look at the temporary structures

actually I think this is the area right between Beirut gate and the center for the arts. (see link below for map) When I went down last year they had the same half built structure I see in the pic now. I always wondered what it was.

http://wikimapia.org/#lat=33.8928567&lon=35.5050284&z=18&l=0&m=b&search=beirut

actually I think this is the area right between Beirut gate and the center for the arts. (see link below for map) When I went down last year they had the same half built structure I see in the pic now. I always wondered what it was.

http://wikimapia.org/#lat=33.8928567&lon=35.5050284&z=18&l=0&m=b&search=beirut

Was it a market? or maybe the remnants of the sit in ? :)

I wish I could tell you
it was weird, it looked like a temporary structure but it was secured with concrete on the ground I dunno what it was/is.. but I dont think its anything significant.

Is the project Beb Beirut (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1447329) technically part of Beirut Gate?

^^ Technically yes, or at least the plot is part of what we used to define as "Beirut Gate".

Actually, I believe the "Beirut Gate" project is "shrinking" with each "unrelated" new project occupying one of its claimed lands.

I made this illustration to clarify what I mean. Showing are the plots that the original Beirut Gate project used to occupy:

http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af175/_Zippo_/SSC%20Projects%20Pictures/Beb%20Beirut/beirut-gate-plots.jpg

We know for a fact that plots 5 & 6 are occupied by the "Plus Towers" project, which doesn't mention "Beirut Gate" anywhere, and that the Plot 7 is occupied by this project. (Beb Beirut, which only states BG as having the old design, and that their "strategy was to differentiate themselves from adjacent buildings" )

So basically that's 3 plots down, and 5 more to go; Let's continue...

Plot 1, is indicated on the (updated) Solidere website by this render:

http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af175/_Zippo_/SSC%20Projects%20Pictures/Beb%20Beirut/Plot1.jpg
Courtesy of Solidere

...and described by:

Bachoura Company - Nabil Gholam Architects

Note that Nabil Gholam has nothing to do with Beirut Gate.

Now, plot 8, is indicated by this render:

http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af175/_Zippo_/SSC%20Projects%20Pictures/Beb%20Beirut/Plot8.jpg
Courtesy of Solidere

and described by:

901 Saifi Company - ERGA Group

...and although ERGA is related to Beirut Gate (among others), but this design is totally "out of the theme" of BG.

This leaves us with only 3 remaining plots (minus the Saint Vincent church of course), which are: plots 2, 3 and 4.

Those plots are described with the same sentence in the Solidere website:

Bachoura Company - Christian de Portzamparc (France) / ERGA Group

The renders representing the plots are as follows:

Plot 2
http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af175/_Zippo_/SSC%20Projects%20Pictures/Beb%20Beirut/Plot2.jpg
Courtesy of Solidere

Plot 3
http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af175/_Zippo_/SSC%20Projects%20Pictures/Beb%20Beirut/Plot3.jpg
Courtesy of Solidere

Plot 4
http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af175/_Zippo_/SSC%20Projects%20Pictures/Beb%20Beirut/Plot4.jpg
Courtesy of Solidere

This should also give you a hint about the fate of the "bubble", according to Plot 2...

So as a conclusion, the "Beirut Gate" as a project (if ever it's still named by that), went from 8 plots to only 3...

^^ Thank you for the illustration and renderings. I am just confused since we havent heard much about these projects in the context of Beirut Gate, but it's my understanding that Solidere refers to all seven plots (I think both Plus Towers are considered one) collectively as "Beirut Gate", even though each plot would be an individual project with various developers/architects. This is somewhat like how the "Wadi Abu Jamil" section of the BCD includes multiple independent projects. I am not sure if Solidere is still using the term to brand and market the location, but the name "Beb Beirut" isn't a coincidence.

"Beirut Gate" (as it used to be) occupied 8 plots. "Plus Towers" project is spread along 2 plots (1525 and 1542).

http://www.beirut-gate.net/images/img_plot_zoom.jpg
Courtesy of beirut-gate.net

I get what you're saying Beiruti, and it would have been the case if a specific project with the name of "Beirut Gate" didn't exist. (I hope I made myself clear).

The thing is that "Beirut Gate" (as a single project) does exist indeed, and is spreading (currently) on 3 plots of land. (987, 1477 and 1526)

here's the "Beirut Gate" project's page that you can find in the official "Christian de Portzamparc" website (http://www.chdeportzamparc.com/content.asp?LANGUEID=2) under "projects" > "-open blocks-".

http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af175/_Zippo_/SSC%20Projects%20Pictures/Beirut%20Gate/ChristianDePortzaamparc-BeirutGate1.jpg

...and here's the text:

http://i1005.photobucket.com/albums/af175/_Zippo_/SSC%20Projects%20Pictures/Beirut%20Gate/ChristianDePortzaamparc-BeirutGate1_text.jpg

The first line reads: "Project of housing towers on three different lots..."
Also note that its status is "studies in progress"

Anyway, I will post the renderings in the BG thread later on.