WadiOnline News - Deadline For Dubai's Overcrowded Villas

Deadline for Dubai's overcrowded villas

Publish Date: 2010-02-08 03:00:05 Story Code: 25087

DUBAI // Landlords have been given a �final deadline� of Sunday to evict multiple families or bachelors from their villas before the municipality cuts utilities or even demolishes illegally built structures.

In the latest salvo in the �one villa, one family� campaign, the municipality yesterday urged tenants to �correct their status� by next week. Failing this, action would be taken, it warned.

�Dubai Municipality calls upon the landlords and tenants who are violating building rules such as overcrowding families and bachelors that they should participate in these efforts by removing such irregularities and correct their status before February 14,� it said in a statement.

�After the deadline, the municipality will cut services to these buildings and residences and demolish and remove irregularities.�

A spokesman for the municipality yesterday said it had no further comment about how the campaign would be executed or whether the irregularities referred to partitions within buildings or the buildings themselves. More information would be given out to the public this week, he said.

The municipality launched the campaign in May 2008, stating that villas could be occupied by only one family. Bachelors could not stay in villas and were ordered to move to labour accommodation or apartments.

Municipal inspectors slapped notices on overcrowded villas, warning tenants to move out or face fines and having the utilities cut off. Fines of Dh50,000 (US$13,500) were handed out to some landlords. Many tenants, mostly families, moved out following the action but many others continue to live in these villas.

In November last year, Omar Mohammed Abdul Rahman, the head of buildings inspection, who is leading the campaign, said inspectors had noted 14,000 violations. Despite disconnection of electricity to overcrowded villas, many residents bought generators and continued living in the same villas, he said.

The municipality claimed that overcrowding in villas was unhygienic. The trend is common in areas such as Satwa, Bur Dubai, Deira and Hor al Anz.

In the Satwa yesterday, bachelors and families living in shared villas complained it was difficult to find affordable housing in Dubai.

Hassan, a 32-year-old taxi driver who shares a villa with other drivers, said they were aware of the law.

�Municipality men came and told us 20 days ago that we would have to leave soon,� he said. �We are all searching for other houses. The main areas we look for are International City or Al Quoz.�

Ali, a 34-year-old taxi driver who shares the same villa, said: �We have not found any rooms anywhere else. We have been living here for over three years and we need to find a place now that is close to the business district.�

An Indian man, who did not want to be named for fear of being caught by authorities, said: �We are not staying here by choice. We know that there is no place else where we could live on this rent�. He said he pays Dh1,750 month.

�The front gate is always locked and we come home from the back gate to avoid any attention. We have to find ways to survive.�

Residents said many landlords were encouraging them to keep a low profile and continue living in the villas instead of evicting them.

© The National 2010. All rights reserved.

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Source: The National
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