BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 20. The Sea Breeze project, implemented on the coast of the Caspian Sea, is being formed as a large-scale urban development model based on the "city within a city" concept, which currently has over 50,000 residents and is designed for settlement of half a million people in the future in the master plan, Sales Director at Sea Breeze, Ena-Kamelia Melikova,said, Trend reports.
She made the remark at an event entitled "Delivering Smart and Sustainable Urban Projects in Azerbaijan within the framework of the 13th session of the World Forum of Cities (WUF13) in Baku.
"This is not just a concept or a model, but a city that has been implemented in reality. Currently, development work has been carried out on an area of more than 4 million square meters, and the project has been actively expanded for 5-6 years," she explained.
According to her, Sea Breeze began with an initial stage of 7 kilometers along the Caspian coast and will cover a total of 22-23 kilometers of coastline.
The project plans to cover more than 30 million square meters of construction area, including residential buildings, hotels, commercial facilities, and various infrastructure.
The representative emphasized that the project initially started with a small hotel and restaurant complex called "Shorehouse", and then moved to the development stage with the "Lighthouse" project.
"After 2018, we introduced the management model of apart-hotels and residential buildings. This system creates great convenience for investors, as property management, leasing, and sale are carried out professionally," she said.
According to the Sea Breeze official, artificial peninsulas and large-scale zones are being created within Sea Breeze.
"Marriott, Hilton, and other international hotel brands will operate on the 50-hectare artificial peninsula called 'Half Moon'," she noted.
The project also includes the construction of the tallest building in Azerbaijan, the Cipriani Tower, with a height of 323 meters.
She also said that the architectural solutions of the project are being developed in cooperation with international companies.
"We are working with Scott Brownrigg, Shaun Killa, and other well-known architectural bureaus," she emphasized.
According to Melikova, a casino infrastructure is also planned for Sea Breeze.
"This will be the largest casino in Europe and the fifth largest in the world, and the first such project in the region. At the same time, a new artificial island called 'Fire Island' of 200 hectares is also planned. Residential, commercial and hotel infrastructure will be created on this area and will be part of a complex urban concept," she noted.
The Sea Breeze official said that special attention is paid to greenery and landscaping.
"We invested $ 30 million in landscaping last year, and in 2026 this figure is planned to exceed $ 50 million. More than 11 million plants have already been planted," she emphasized.
She added that digital 3D modeling and simulation systems are used to manage the project.
"We also manage Sea Breeze as a digital model based on Unreal Engine. This allows us to visualize the entire project in real time," she noted.
The representative also pointed out that the project is expanding internationally.
"We are implementing the Sea Breeze Uzbekistan projects in Uzbekistan and the Sea Breeze Montenegro projects in Montenegro," she clarified.
According to her, these projects, implemented in Azerbaijan and abroad, are developing as a new example of the "city inside the city" model and combine the residential, business, tourism and service sectors.
Today marks the fourth day of WUF13 in Baku.
The first day included a ministerial meeting dedicated to the New Urban Agenda, a ministerial roundtable, assemblies for women and civil society, business sessions, and discussions on urban prosperity. An official ceremony marking the raising of the UN and Azerbaijani flags also took place.
The second day stood out for the inaugural Leaders' Summit, featuring high-level discussions on the global housing crisis, urbanization policy, and urban resilience. Concurrently, the opening of the Mexico City pavilion took place, serving as a significant platform for expanding cooperation with the Latin American region and preparing for WUF14.
The third day of WUF13 featured a comprehensive program of events covering the global housing crisis, the formation of safe and inclusive cities, climate resilience, artificial intelligence and urban governance, green urbanization, social equity, and sustainable transport.
WUF13, which has attracted more than 40,000 registered participants from 182 countries, will continue until May 22. Held under the theme “Housing the world: Safe and resilient cities and communities,” the forum brings together governments, international organizations, experts, and representatives of civil society to strengthen global cooperation in the field of sustainable urban development.
