Disappearing Satwa

Satwa behind walls

A tract of land between Trade Centre and the commercial area of Satwa has for many years been an open space where laborers played cricket and where the many drivers living in Satwa parked their trucks and buses.  It was a space occasionally used for events, and across which many Satwa residents walked to and from the metro stations along Sheikh Zayed Road.  The area also contains many old homes and apartment buildings, most housing south Asian laborers, though a few old Emirati families remain. 

Possible construction area in yellow;
current signs of construction in red

A development project for this land has been rumored for many years.  Work on the project began with the clearance of old houses just before the financial crisis of 2009, after which everything stopped and it seemed the area was safe from bulldozers and construction crews.

That is no longer.

A few weeks ago temporary walls went up across much of the area and today Satwa’s streets are a maze of corridors, with demolition and digging just on the other side.  I spoke with a crew of surveyors who said the area is to be a residential development of single family homes, or what is euphemistically referred to in the region as villas.  That is all the detail I have now on what is to come.

This area has for many years been my photography laboratory and images taken here comprise the majority of photos in my collection.  It seems I am now presented with the opportunity to chronicle its transformation.

An old Satwa home in September 2015

The same home, emptied, 24 November 2016

Same home, demolished, 01 December 2016

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