Al Rashid Mall

infobox shopping mall|shopping_mall_name = Al Rashid Mall


caption =
location = Khobar, Saudi Arabia
coordinates = coord|26|17|26.62|N|50|10|51.24|E|display=title
opening_date = 1995 [ "Alrashidmall, 4 U & Your Family", 15th issue Jan 2008] , extension 2006 [http://www.gulfconstructionworldwide.com/bkArticlesF.asp?Article=7614&Section=1472&IssueID=259 Article] at Gulf Construction Worldwide, Volume: XXVII, No. 5 of May 2006]
manager = Fouad Alfakhri
owner = Al-Rashid Trading & Contracting CO. LTD.
developer =
architects =
building_costs =
number_of_stores = 650+
number_of_anchors = ca. 8+
floor_area = 150,000 m²
floors = 5
parking = ca. 5,700 spaces in an attached Carpark and elsewere. [http://www.gulfconstructionworldwide.com/bkArticlesF.asp?Article=7614&Section=1472&IssueID=259 Article] at Gulf Construction Worldwide, Volume: XXVII, No. 5 of May 2006]
website = http://www.rashidmall.comThe Al Rashid Mall is a shopping mall located in the west of the Khobar city center in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The mall is located on the northern side of the King Abdullah Road (former Dhahran Road) opposite where it is joined by the King Khalid Road (former King Fahd Road).

Layout and Floorplan

The original Mall based on a Y shaped layout was opened in 1995 and had four levels. The extended plan as of 2008 includes a Carrefour [ [http://www.arabnews.com/?page=6&section=0&article=88101&d=12&m=10&y=2006 Article] at ArabNews of 12th October 2006] hypermarket in a building on the other side of a small road with a multistory car park building alongside it and a detached mosque. [http://www.gulfconstructionworldwide.com/bkArticlesF.asp?Article=7614&Section=1472&IssueID=259 Article] at Gulf Construction Worldwide, Volume: XXVII, No. 5 of May 2006] The Hypermarket and the car park building are connected to an extension of the original mall by a large bridge with shops in the second and third floor. This extension is build alongside the right side of the original "Y". It alone rises with the bridge to a third floor of shops, while the top of the Carrefour building consists of furnished apartments.

The public parts of the partly subterranean "Ground Floor 1" of the original "Y" contain a car park, a "Youngsters entertainment Center" with a Go-Kart arena and shops including a Spa for Ladies in its immediate extension.

The ground floor has a bank and a restaurant under the Carrefour with the rest left as car park. The main building with its extension offer all their space to shops arranged along a system of parallel ways in the branches of the "Y" in the old part and along the outer walls of the new extension. The old part has a stairwell and a large court with a fountain while the new extension has three stairwells which also serve for daylighting the mall under tent like roofs. The basic anchor shops on this level are four or more family and ladies fashion shops. While the more than forty fashion shops take up for most of the space on this level, the second largest group with more than thirty mostly smaller shops is made up of gold, jewelry and watch shops.

The first floor has a furniture store and a large jewellery store (Paris Gallery) as anchor stores in the extension, while the anchors of the old part are two department stores, a fashion store, an electronic store and an outlet of a well known book store chain.

The second floor contains the Carrefour on the whole level of its building. In the new extension a large perfume and cosmetics department (Paris Gallery) and maybe some family fashion stores function as anchor stores. Besides mosque areas this level is mainly dedicated to restaurants, coffee shops and fast meals sections in the old part of the building.

The third floor has a large family entertainment center called "Fun Oasis" similar to a theme park. while the rest is dedicated to more restaurants, snack shops and other eating facilities.

Building

The mall was designed and built by the Al-Rashid Trading & Contracting CO. LTD. which won a certificate of merit for designing the mall from The International Council of Shopping Centers ( ICSC ). [ [http://www.bayt.com/job/company_details.adp?xid=96268 Company Profile] at www.bayt.com] [ [http://www.rtcc.com.sa/profile.htm Company Profile] at RTCC]

Fountains

The mall sports 3 very beautiful fountains.There are the following fountains:-

1. One with fire in the middle which is displayed at around 8:30pm to 10:00pm daily.

2. There is another one which has water coming out from different places and the water even intersects the other streams in the middle of the air.

3. And the last one which is present in the new area, has a artificial rocks and gives a small view of waterfall and also every once in a while the water comes out and goes almost 3 floors above the ground.It can be seen from any floor and is really high.

References

External links

* [http://www.rashidmall.com/rashidmall.htm Homepage] direct, skipped intro.
* [http://archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.jsp?site_id=4165 Photos] at www.archnet.org