Digital rendering of the Frank Gehry-designed Guggenheim Abu Dhabi. Courtesy Guggenheim

In a long message on their web site, The General Secretariat of the Executive Council of Abu Dhabi announced a whole slew of developmental projects, among them the cultural district on Saadiyat Island, an artistic center that will include the Shaikh Zayed Museum, the Louvre Abu Dhabi, an outpost of the Guggenheim Museum and the Emirates Museum. According to their web site, this “will rank Abu Dhabi as a world-class tourist destination.”

As The New York Times‘ Randy Kennedy mentioned earlier this afternoon, the plans have been off and on for several years.

Other projects include a redesigned national museum, the establishment of 24 new schools and a “world-class” rehab center.