Dubai-based Azizi Developments has begun work on a Dh12-billion ($3.26 billion) project patterned after the French Riviera in Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City, a report said.

The project, dubbed Azizi Riviera, will be implemented within the Meydan One project near Dubai Water Canal, reported Wam, the Emirates official news agency.

It includes 69 mid-rise residential buildings, a retail district, as well as one four-star and one five-star hotel. The first and second phase of the project are expected to be completed in December 2018.

In terms of residences, the development will offer 13,000 units including one-bedroom, two-bedroom and studio apartments.

The ceremony for laying the foundation stone of the project was attended by Saeed Humaid Al Tayer, chairman and CEO of Meydan Group, and Mirwais Aziz, chairman of Azizi Group.

Designed to resemble the French Riviera waterfront, the development will also offer access to the Meydan One Mall and the Meydan Racecourse – where the Dubai World Cup is held.

Azizi Riviera is the first in a series of projects that Azizi is planning to develop in the Meydan One mega-development, following a partnership with Meydan Group announced earlier this year.

The wider Meydan One development will feature the 711-m-tall Dubai One Tower, Meydan One Mall, a five-star hotel, a civic plaza with dancing water fountains, an indoor sports facility, a 4-km-canal and a marina.