1 · Position
Construction began in January 2010 on 310,000 square metres in the centre of Doha, as a regeneration of the historical district of Mushayrib, at a cost of about 5.5 billion dollars. It is promoted as the world's first sustainable downtown regeneration project and among the smartest cities anywhere. The district recorded 15 million visitors in 2024, up 66 per cent year on year, and Qatar Airways began relocating its global headquarters there from 2025.
2 · Why it is in the Library
Read it against LHL-S-240 Roppongi Hills, Tokyo. Two Gulf capitals, the same decade, two opposite theories of what a downtown is: Dubai built two square kilometres of desert around the tallest building on earth; Doha rebuilt a quarter that already existed and made the argument about heritage and climate rather than height. Both now carry luxury houses. The Library holds them adjacent so the comparison cannot be avoided.
3 · Candour
⚑ The claims — first sustainable downtown regeneration, one of the smartest cities on earth — are the developer's own and are recorded as claims, not findings. Visitor figures are also the district's own. Regeneration of a historical district necessarily involves what was demolished to permit it, and that is not established here.