Hdh. Kulhudhuffushi City Council has said the practical work of the city's 400-housing unit project can be implemented early next year.
Kulhudhuffushi Council member Rilwan Mohamed told AVAS that the first stage of preparations had been completed to start the construction of the housing units. The first stage focused on research and drawings, he said.
"The works are ongoing without interruption. The drawings of the housing units have been submitted to the Planning Ministry, and they have been approved. The next stage is implementing the practical work," Rilwan said.
The government awarded the construction of 400 housing units in Kulhudhuffushi to Twenty-Third Metallurgical Construction Group Co. Ltd., a joint venture of Donbase Pvt. Ltd in July this year. The contractor has been granted 540 days to complete the project.
When asked whether he believes the housing units will be completed by the scheduled date, Rilwan said the contractor assures that the work will be completed by the date given by the government.
"The contractor informs us that the work will be completed by the given date. An exact date will be known when we receive more drawings," Rilwan explained.
When asked how the units would be allocated after completion, Rilwan said the council still needed to make policies on allocating the housing units. However, once 20 percent of the construction work is completed, the relevant rules and policies will be formulated to determine the beneficiaries of the housing units, he said.
Housing is a major issue in all parts of the Maldives. Asked whether the construction of 400 housing units in Kulhudhuffushi would solve the housing problem in the city, Rilwan said it would not completely solve the problem, but it would provide some relief.
"The issue may not be solved for the entire city. However, it will bring about a good solution. We are already working very closely with the government to bring more such projects to Kulhudhuffushi," Rilwan said.
Each housing unit built under the current project will be 1,000 sqft. Each housing unit will have three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a living room, a kitchen, a dining room, laundry, and a store room. The housing units will receive adequate natural light, and a park will be constructed nearby for recreational purposes.
All housing units in this project will be 11 stories tall and have two lifts per building. The ground floor of each building will be utilized for commercial purposes and maintenance offices. Each apartment will be allocated one cycle parking slot from nearby parking lots.
