Re: The Deltan Empire - 30/01/13 Update 32 - Kanalka Bay Bridge

[art128]

Nice looking update! I really enjoyed the MMPs and the general development of the city. The beach is really one of the best i've seen so far!

[noahclem]

Great update    ...and huge! I really liked the giant roundabout and your coastal areas. Keep up the great work 

[apeguy]

It's that time of the week again, and here's update 4! Today's update is about Horizonte de los Ninos, a small town and the westernmost part of the town of Hasbury. Originally founded sometime in the early 1830's as a ranching village, supplying mainly to Hasbury Key. The town expanded during the second half of the 20th Century, and was absorbed into Hasbury in the 1970's. Much of the area was devastated by the 1991 tsunami, but since then the area has recovered and rebuilt. Its location on the Barrier Beach makes it a popular tourist spot, and an ideal location for people wishing to move out of Kanalka City, but still remain within commuting distance.

Horizonte lies directly on a major road, is served by a major rail line, and is bisected by the M105 Motorway, with Junction 5 nearby providing nearby access. This makes Horizonte accessible and desirable. The town is unusual because of its spanish name. It is beleived that the name was coined by Spanish Ships fleeing westwards from The British Navy, and apparently dropped anchor offshore from the town. The horizon was framed by two volcanic islands that lied offshore, which were named "The Two Children" - El Nino Grande and El Nino Pequena. (which we'll be visiting soon ) Where the town lies today was called "The Children's Horizon", and the name just stuck. But before we visit Horizonte, here are the replies:

Very interesting update! 
There are many things I like: the distribution of roads, the large "roundabout", the port area and the beach.
Also special is the M-105 Junction 5, and the church near the beach with the large cemetery.
Great work!

I'm pleased you like the update. I always build my transport networks before anything else, and plan where the major networks will be. Sometimes I may need to make improvements to transport systems, but the planning I've done before means that the changes are small and easy to do.

Stunning start so far!  I really like how you're thinking big with a lot of your developments so far (the park with the bike lanes is massive)! 

The map and the extensive story are a fantastic addition.  The detailing is superb as well, I'm looking forward to seeing more!

Thanks! I try to provide a decent story to go with my pictures, to make them a bit more interesting.

Nice updates. I especially like the way how your beaches and industrial zones worked out. Lovely details!

Thankyou. The beaches are one of my specialities.

This is a really nice MD. I like the background story that goes with the pictures and tells a tale of its history.
Hasbury Commons, the railyard/ junkyard, and the Ocean Church with its cemetary ( maybe a few to many trees in the cemetary?) are things that stand out in my mind. I like how they each stand out but still fit in with their surroundings.
The tsunami damage to the trees was especially good, how nature reclaims or recovers is an area I'm still trying to master.

Your MD has been an enjoyable read and I look foward to the next update.

zz

Well I'm glad you liked the ruined fort, because there's going to be more ruins as we explore Barrierland, and there will be plenty more large-scale developments that I've got in store for you. Regarding the trees in the cemetary, the trees were smaller maxis trees, but then I got marsh's tree replacement mod, which changed them to bigger SimFox trees.

Great MD! What a mess missing some Updates

I really like your Bat-choice! 

Keep it on my friend

Thanks! I'm always happy to see new people leaving a comment here, and I'm pleased that you like my BAT choice.

This is very impressive, everything looks great!

Thankyou very much!

Nice looking update! I really enjoyed the MMPs and the general development of the city. The beach is really one of the best i've seen so far!

Thanks, the beaches are one of my priorities when making my cities, especially since every tile in Barrierland has a lot of beaches, so they have to look good. Glad you like them.

Great update    ...and huge! I really liked the giant roundabout and your coastal areas. Keep up the great work 

Thanks for the comment. Yeah the last update was pretty huge, this update is only half the size, but hopefully you'll like it anyway. 


And now, let's go to Horizonte de los Ninos...



(facing north) The town itself is now a large suburb of Hasbury Key, but originally it was a seperate town, both geographically and economically. Horizonte didn't have the good soils of Kanalka City or Hasbury, so instead cattle ranches were set up here. This lasted until after the Alterra War, as Horizonte was losing out to competition from bigger ranches in the north of the country. Fortunately its proximity to Hasbury and Kanalka City means that the town has always enjoyed some of their economic benefits. As you can see the old core of the town is directly opposite the train station, which is built on the busiest part of the Sugarcane Railroad, the section between Hasbury and Kanalka City.





(facing south) On the other side of the M105 from the old town centre is South Horizonte. While not an actual neighborhood of Horizonte, South Horizonte is simply the name given to the parts of the town the are divided from the older northern part of the town by the M105. The town has been bisected like this since the late 1960's, and due to the fact the southern half lies on the Barrier Beach, more people moved here and so the southern half of Horizonte has developed quicker. There are four underpasses that link both halves of the town together.





(facing north) Further along the South coast of Horizonte is the Horizonte Beach Strip, home to tourist shops, resturaunts and hotels. This area was developed in the 2000's in order to increase the popularity of Horizonte, although the strip is no match against what its larger neighbors can offer. Instead the strip just provides a quick rest stop for people or those who want a cheaper hotel but still with beach access. The tower in the pic is the HydroTower, the tallest building in the town. It was built in 1976 to supply water to the entire town. In 2013 the maintenance deck below the tower was converted into on observation tower, as the centrepeice of the strip. Today it's more of a quirky local landmark than a tourist attraction.





(facing east) This is the westernmost part of Horizonte de los Ninos, Ocean Gardens. The land was bought by Palmacre Developments in 1999, and was a highly controversial development. This was beacuse the area had been ravaged by a tsunami only eight years before, and thousands of people needed affordable housing but instead the company built huge, luxurious mansions for those who were least affected by the global depression at the time. Large neighborhoods full of mansions like these are common in the Barrier Islands, and Ocean Gardens is one of many high-wealth neighborhoods in the area. The large police station in the picture is a division of the Kanalka City Highway Patrol.





(facing north) On the edge of Horizonte, beyond Ocean Gardens is the Recycling Centre. One of the largest in the area, the recycling centre was originally a ranch house, but the area was bought by the government in 1983 and converted into a recycling plant. Even after 98 years the facility still recycles rubbish from all around. The driveway to the left of the plant leads to the beach.





(facing south) Now we come to what is unfortunately a common site in Barrierland - ruins. The Jacobson Sugarcane Farm was established in 1935 when the founder Gerald Jacobson noticed some sugarcane growing on what was thought to be poor soil. It turned out that there was an area of good soil in a place where soil quality is usually poor, and so a farm was set up. The unique location of the sugar gave it a unique flavour, increasing its popularity over the 20th Century. Amazingly, the Tsunami of 1991 isn't what destroyed the farm. The solid construction of the buildings meant that they were lightly damaged by the waves. The crop for that year was completely destroyed however, but next year it was planted again. The farm struggled during the great depression of the 1990's, and by 2004 it was in serious financial trouble. An fire caused by faulty electricals in 2008 hammered the final nail into the coffin, and the farm was abandoned. Today you can still see the unharvested sugarcane, and the trees slowly claiming the farm back.





(facing north) Here we have the Horizonte Golf Club, famed for being the only 18 hole golf club in Barrierland. It was established in 1894, whith the clubhouse to the left of the carpark built two years later. The white building to the right was an addition completed in 2006, and contains a pro shop. The club's entrance is on a major road, one of three roads that connect Hasbury and Kanalka City. On the other side of the road is the Horizonte Traincare Depot.





(facing east) While it's not the most challenging of holes, hole 6 offers players breathtaking views across the sheltered waters towards Delta City. I think I did alright with this golfcourse, considering it's the first I've ever done with MMPs, and the fact I didn't do any lotting, so I had to use full-sized flags for the holes.





(facing south) Heading back east towards Hasbury, we come to Willsden, the westernmost extansion of North Horizonte. Most of the houses are quite expensive, due to their proximity to major roads, and a nearby golf club. However, there are still smaller afforable homes nestled between the larger mansions. There is also a small market and another recycling centre here.





(facing south) And finally, a night shot of Horizonte Station. This three-platformed station was built in 1909, and has changed relatively little since then. This station is threatened however, as there are plans to build a larger, more efficient station further east, rendering this one obsolete. It becomes very busy during rush hour, due to its position on the mainline between Hasbury and Kanalka City. Other than rush hour, the station, much like the rest of the town is pretty quiet.


Well that concludes this update, next time we'll be visiting Hasbury Passage, a large artificial channel to the east of Hasbury Key, with a small outpost town. Stay tuned!

[ThomasAH]

Thankyou. The beaches are one of my specialities.

They sure are!

Once again a fine looking update. Keep it up the good work. 

[rooker1]

  Love the golf course.

Robin

[noahclem]

Great update!  You really do a nice job with the MMPs--including the golf course. I like the storyline as well and appreciate the personal responses. BTW, this length of update is about perfect for me 

[Framly]

Great using of MMPs . The Golf course looks excellent..

[carlfatal]

What should i say, this and the last update - both are quite wonderful.
There are so many scenes i like, i really don´t know where to begin or to end. The storytelling - more explaining the background of what happened here and how the (re)developing was done - is well done and a very good idea. As a foreigner i really feel invited in Your country. 
My absolute favorite pic in the last update is that of the abandoned sugarcane farm. 
But now i will return to the pictures,
greetz, Carl

[dedgren]

Alex, a really nice pair of recent updates.  I like your "less is more" approach- both your rural and urbanscapes are uncluttered and flow under the eye very easily.  Your responses to comments are also very impressive.  I get a sense that you are doing DE for the long haul, and very much look forward to seeing where you are with it a year from now.


David

[RickD]

I really enjoy reading all the texts under the picture. Although it takes quite long as you updates are huge. Anyway, this is my favorite style of MDing. I like it when towns, infrastructure and houses are not just there but everything has a purpose and a history and is part of a bigger context.

[zzsteven]

Very nice update. Great job on the Jacobson Sugarcane farm. The West Horizonte Recycling Center looks good too.

zz

[NASCAR_Guy]

that golf course is brilliant!

also where did you get this black orange and green building?

[apeguy]

I have some bad news. Two days ago my computer started to act up. I was literally 10 minutes away from finishing update 5, and the screen went off. After a couple of minutes the computer tells me it has to shut down due to some unsolvable error. Luckily earlier that day I was doing my monthly backup of my region and my plugins folder, so even if I have to start working on the old computer, I won't lose anything. However, it may be a little while before my MD is up and running again, but as soon as the computer is fixed or I get everything onto the old computer, I'll be able to post update 5 stright away, along with all the replies. Hopefully I'll be able to sort everything within the next week or so.

[noahclem]

Bummer about the computer problems! Good luck getting everything up and running again and I'll look forward to the next update.

[Dantes]

Oh no  Good luck to repair your PC 

[apeguy]

Well I'm back, and so is the Deltan Empire, with update 5! As you may already know I've been having problems with my computer, meaning that getting on SC4 and updating my MD has been impossible, but now we have a new graphics card, the problem seems to have gone. It wasn't all bad though, the downtime meant that I could get on with my long list of PS3 games I haven't played yet, like Rage and Resistance 3. I'm still not quite sure if the problem has gone yet, but so far the computer has been fine. Unfortunately I haven't been able to continue working on Kanalka City over the past few days, but this doesn't mean that the next few updates will be delayed.

Anyway, today I'll be showing you Hasbury Passage, a large channel cut through the Barrier Islands to provide a safe passage for ships, and cutting 50 miles off sea journeys between Delta City Centre and the Catalan Sea. The passage was opened in 1839, and saw heavy use from cargo ships until the 1960's, when the Port of Delta City went into decline, and the larger Progress Passage was opened up 20 miles to the west. Despite this, the passage is still used by hundreds of pleasure craft, ferries and cruise ships, and the bridge that spans the passage is one of the symbols of Barrierland.

As well as this, we'll be visiting Surftown, a small community of surfers and sea-lovers, a town that rose from the ashes after one of the worst disasters ever to hit Barrierland, the Great Tsunami of 1991. At 03:30am local time, a massive slip in the seabed occured just north of the Catalan Islands, 1500 miles to the south of the Barrier Islands, causing an enormous shockwave. Most of the energy was directed north, towards the Deltan Coast, and took only three hours to cross the ocean and reach the Barrier Islands.

Very few buildings within half a mile of the Barrier Beach survived, as the unstoppable wall of water tore through everything, destroying decades of progress and prosperity that made Barrierland so successful, in mere minutes. The tsunami couldn't have come at a worse time, as it struck in the midst of the Great Depression, when the entire world was in economic turmoil. It wasn't until the 2020's that Barrierland fully recovered, and the environment took even longer, with some offshore coral reefs still recovering today, nearly a century later.

Surftown is one of many communities that was devastated by the event, but today it's no longer a small outpost town with a few shacks. Now it's a closely-knit community of outdoor enthusiasts, mainly surfers, hence its name. It may still be remote, but it's a popular resort town with some of the finest surfing conditions in the world.

Now before the pictures, we have the replies...

Thankyou. The beaches are one of my specialities.

They sure are!

Once again a fine looking update. Keep it up the good work. 

Thanks for dropping by again. I'm glad you liked the update.

Love the golf course.

Robin

Thanks!

Great update!  You really do a nice job with the MMPs--including the golf course. I like the storyline as well and appreciate the personal responses. BTW, this length of update is about perfect for me 

Well I'm pleased that you like my work with MMPs, I don't consider myself an expert with them, but it's nice to know my work is appreciated. Thanks for the reply.

Great using of MMPs . The Golf course looks excellent..

Thankyou, I'm glad you like my golf course.

What should i say, this and the last update - both are quite wonderful.
There are so many scenes i like, i really don´t know where to begin or to end. The storytelling - more explaining the background of what happened here and how the (re)developing was done - is well done and a very good idea. As a foreigner i really feel invited in Your country. 
My absolute favorite pic in the last update is that of the abandoned sugarcane farm. 
But now i will return to the pictures,
greetz, Carl

Wow, thanks for the nice reply. I'm happy you like the background information that I put with my updates, and I'm also glad you liked the abandoned sugarcane farm, because there's going to be a lot more abandoned stuff as we progress through the Barrier Islands. I've also been experimenting with other stuff to make abandoned/post-apocalyptic.

Alex, a really nice pair of recent updates.  I like your "less is more" approach- both your rural and urbanscapes are uncluttered and flow under the eye very easily.  Your responses to comments are also very impressive.  I get a sense that you are doing DE for the long haul, and very much look forward to seeing where you are with it a year from now.


David

Hey David, thanks for stopping by again. You're right, The Deltan Empire is going to be a long-term project, I do plan to eventually build and show other parts of Deltania and the rest of the Empire, but for the next few months we'll be staying in Barrierland. I'm pleased you also appreciate my responses to comments.

I really enjoy reading all the texts under the picture. Although it takes quite long as you updates are huge. Anyway, this is my favorite style of MDing. I like it when towns, infrastructure and houses are not just there but everything has a purpose and a history and is part of a bigger context.

Thanks, I'm glad you like my style of MDing, it's kind of similar to how I used to do my old MD over at SimCityCentral, (link at the top of the first post) but my skills in both SC4 and MDs has vastly improved in the last few years. I do plan to add a little peice of the region's overall history in each update, starting today with the Great Tsunami.

Very nice update. Great job on the Jacobson Sugarcane farm. The West Horizonte Recycling Center looks good too.

zz

Thankyou, glad you like the update, and thanks for stopping by again.

that golf course is brilliant!

also where did you get this black orange and green building?

Thanks for the reply. If you're referring to the building I think you are, then you can find it in this residential pack by jen_p: http://www.sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=1292

Now we move onto the pics:



(facing north) Hasbury Passage was first built in 1839, and was then widened in 1929 to its current size. The wide embankments that line the sides were left flat and open to allow artillery guns and other military instillations to be set up along the passage in times of war. The last time the Passage was fortified was during the Alterra War, when the sides were bristling with guns of all sizes, ready to tear apart any enemy vessel that tried to get through the passage. Today the public can walk along the embankments, watching all the ships that go in and out of the Passage every day. The four coloumns that watch over the southern entrance were added in 1955, to remember those lost in the Alterra War.





(facing north) Crossing the Passage is the Irving Zismund Bridge. Work started on the bridge in 1933, shortly after the passage was widened to allow two-way travel. As the bridge's construction co-incided with the start of the Alterra War, invasion fears meant that the government invested in building a second deck beneath the main road deck, which was built to add gun batteries, in order to fire upon any enemy ships. The bridge itself was massively over-engineered, meaning that it's far stronger than it needs to be, in order to withstand heavy gunfire and bombardment, as well as to stand up to the high winds in its exposed location. It stood firm against the great Tsunami of 1991 and only took light damage, except for the lower gun deck which was removed. In the 1980's it was named after the original engineer of the bridge, who later went on to become mayor of Kanalka City. The Bridge has long been a symbol of Barrierland, as it is the first major landmark most people see when coming into the country by boat. It was completed in 1937.





(facing south) Just to the west of the Passage is a small rest stop by the Barrier Beach. Due to its isolated location, it's quiet throughout the year, but that's the attraction for most people who go there.





(facing south) Here we have the most lightly-used junction on the M105, Junction 3. It was built in 1971 mainly as a last chance to avoid going over the bridge and paying the tolls on the other side. (which have since been removed, much to the local's delight) However, with the South-East Hasbury development currently under construction, this junction may see more use in the coming years.





(facing south) Moving north from the M105, we come to the Hasbury Dredging station. This station contains the fleet of dredgers and barges tasked with keeping Hasbury Passage and its navigation clear of sand and sediment, as well as beach replenishment for nearby areas. The two gigantic dredgers were bought by the station in 2024, and were the largest ships of their kind in the world when built in 2013.





(facing south) Just offshore to the north is the barge storage area, where the station's numerous unmanned barges are stored, ready for use.





(facing south) Across the Passage to the east is Surftown. This small town started life in the 1920's as a temporary outpost town, housing the workers who widened the Hasbury Passage, and later on the Irving Zismund Bridge. (Known as the Hasbury Passage Bridge until 1984) After the Bridge was completed, the military took the place over, and housed a small batallion of troops in the town until 1948, shortly after the Alterra War. The area was left uninhabited until the 1970's when travelling surfers found the town, and realised the huge potential of the abandoned buildings and perfect surfing conditions offshore.





(facing north) Just north of the town centre is the abandoned service station. Built on the access roads to the former outpost town and opened in the 1950's, it stayed in service until this section of the Barrierland Highway was upgraded to a motorway in 1965, and the slip roads were closed as they did not match motorway standards. The service station has been abandoned since then.





(facing north) Moving west we can see how the development of the town has gone right up to the embankments of Hasbury Passage. All of the houses in Surftown were hand-built by the residents, meaning that there is a great diversity of styles and architecture in the town. The large clearing was swept treeless in the Great Tsunami, and the residents have kept it like that since then, to provide a space for the music performances during the Surftown Festival, which occurs every August. The festival started in 1983, and has been held every year ever since, even in 1991, a few months after the Tsunami, in an effort to raise money to rebuild the town.





(facing north) Between the town and the sea, we catch a glimpse of the last remaining reminders of the original outpost town. These are the remains of the only permanent structures of the original town, many of which were built when the military moved onto the site. Their close location to the beach meant that they were no match for the Tsunami. The town was rebuilt further back from the beach, and trees were planted for extra protection. Today the ruins remain as a stern reminder to the power of the sea, as well as climbing frames for parkour enthusiasts. Also in the picture is the small diesel generator that used to power the town, until it was connected to the national grid in 2004.





(facing south) To the east the town is less cramped, and is most likely the only direction the town will be able to expand in the future. The large car park was built to help accommodate the four thousand extra people that come to the town during the festival, as well as to provide parking areas for businesses and residents. The large waste ground further to the east is mainly for caravans and motorhomes, but it also serves as an overflow car park during the festival. In the image you can also see the Surftown Chapel, built in 2030.





(facing east) Property developers have left no part of Barrierland untouched, not even the seaside paradise of Surftown. Fortunately, the developers weren't allowed to build in Surftown, instead having to build on the other side of the bridge approach. This new area was originally built in the 2010's, and was named North Surftown, and linked to the town centre by an underpass. The homes and shops here are larger and more luxurious than the hand-built homes of Surftown. North Surftown also has a station, which is built on a small spur that had remained unused ever since its construction until the station was completed in 2020.





(facing west) Just outside North Surftown is the Surftown Plasma Gasification Plant. These plants handle waste that normal recycling centres can't. This one is was the first one to be built in the Barrier Islands, constructed in 2034 when the technology was still largely experimental. It's still in active use to this day.





(facing north) Further down the railway line, where the Surftown Spur meets the mainline, is the West Polperro Junction. It's one of two junctions that serve the Polperro area, Polperro being a small fishing town just over a mile to the east of the junction, which was around long before Surftown, so the junction was named after it. The small service yard was in service until 1960, when it was abandoned. The dirt path continues east until it reaches Polperro.





(facing north) Coming back to Surftown we come to its beach, the heart and soul of Surftown. During the festival the beach become packed with spectators as hundreds of surfers from all over the world come to the small town and compete for the Surftown Cup, one of the Greatest prizes to win in professional surfing. The competition is open to everyone, regardless of age or ability. The barges on the beach were part of a fleet owned by the Dredging Station, which was replenishing the beaches around Surftown, when the Tsunami hit. Some were left stranded on the beach, and instead of removing them, the town's residents decided to leave them there, as they made great viewing platforms for people during the festival.





(facing north) Further along the beach. The Breakwater was built in the early 2010's to help protect the town, after the Tsunami greatly devastated it. It also provides an area for larger private boats to dock, as well as providing the best possible view during the numerous surfing competitions during the Surftown Festival.





(facing south) North of the town is one of many smaller keys scattered along the length of the Barrier Islands. This one is Swanage Key, and is home to the Swanage Lighthouse, which has been a beacon to ships passing through Hasbury Passage since 1945. The lighthouse has been switched off since 1999.





(facing south) Finally, a night shot of the Hang Ten Lounge. It was built in 1981 by one of Surftown's original founders. Today it functions as a bar, surf shop, nightclub and the town hall.


Well that's it for this update, in update 6 we'll be going back to Hasbury Key, to see its small but prosperous downtown. Stay tuned!

[nbvc]

Great images. I like the one with the lighthouse best.

[io_bg]

Fantastic work with the beaches and the rest of the coastal areas! Nice RHW usage too

[Dantes]

Epic harbor area  Great work again 

[RickD]

Great pics again. I would love to see an overview shot of the bridge and the passage.